Secretary of Defense Ash Carter issued 2 directives on Monday that could change the military’s longstanding policy on transgender service members in a matter of months.
The first establishes a DoD working group to study over the next 6 months the policy and readiness implications of allowing transgender persons to serve openly. The working group will be led by Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Brad Carson and will be composed of military and civilian personnel representing all military services and the Joint Staff. The working group will report to Deputy Secretary of Defense Bob Work.
Related: AMA Challenges Transgender Troop Policies
“At my direction, the working group will start with the presumption that transgender persons can serve openly without adverse impact on military effectiveness and readiness, unless and except where objective, practical impediments are identified,” stated Secretary Carter.
The second shifts all decision-making authority in all administrative discharges for those diagnosed with gender dysphoria or who identify themselves as transgender elevated to Under Secretary Carson, who will make determinations on all potential separations. Prior to Secretary Carter’s directive, the Army, Air Force, and Navy had independently initiated their own revised transgender discharge policies, effectively making discrimination more difficult throughout their ranks.
Related: Same-Sex Couples Eligible for All VA Benefits
Secretary Carter’s statement comes just 1 month after the American Medical Association announced in its June 8 resolution, “There is no medically valid reason to exclude transgender individuals from service in the U.S. military.”
“Over the last 14 years of conflict, the Department of Defense has proven itself to be a learning organization,” said Secretary Carter. “Throughout this time, transgender men and women in uniform have been there with us, even as they often had to serve in silence alongside their fellow comrades in arms.”