Fact check: Trump and transgender service members
In announcing he would ban transgender people from the military, President Trump cited “the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail.” Whether the cost is “tremendous” is opinion, but a government-funded report found that allowing transgender people to openly serve in the military would likely have a “marginal impact” on health care costs and military readiness.
The report, released last year by the RAND Corp., estimated the additional cost at “between $2.4 million and $8.4 million annually, representing a 0.04- to 0.13-percent increase in active-component health care expenditures.” It also found that “less than 0.1 percent of the total force would seek transition-related care that could disrupt their ability to deploy.”
The RAND report was commissioned by the Defense Department after then-Secretary Ash Carter announced in July 2015 that the military would study “the policy and readiness implications of welcoming transgender persons to serve openly.”
Nearly a year later, Carter announced a new policy that immediately allowed transgender service members “to openly serve in the U.S. armed forces” without fear of discharge. The policy also set a date of July 1, 2017, for allowing transgender individuals to join the armed forces. The delay was designed to develop training plans, revise regulations and forms, and implement guidance.
On June 30, the Defense Department under Trump delayed the start date for accepting transgender service members until Jan. 1, 2018. In a June 30 memo obtained by the Associated Press, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told service chiefs and secretaries that he would “use this additional time to evaluate more carefully the impact of such accessions on readiness and lethality.”
Associated Press, July 1: "Mattis said the review by the services must be completed by Dec. 1, and he noted that his approval of a delay 'does not presuppose the outcome of the review.' He said the additional time will ensure he has 'the benefit of the views of the military leadership and of the senior civilian officials who are now arriving in the department.' "
However, in a series of tweets, Trump abruptly announced the policy change before the end of the six-month review period.
Let’s look at what we know about the number of transgender individuals currently serving in the military and their potential impact on health care costs and military readiness.