Biden has ended the ban on transgender people serving in the military.

By: Khagesh KG
January 28 2021

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President Biden has reversed the ban on transgender personnel serving in the armed forces.In 2017, the then president, Donald Trump, announced a ban on transgender people serving in the military, stating that the military needed to focus on being victorious without being burdened by the "tremendous medical costs and disruption" brought about by recruiting transgender people. On January 25, 2021, President Joe Biden signed an executive order repealing this particular policy. This is in line with what the policy was under President Barack Obama, who allowed transgender people to take part freely in the military and access health services. Allowing transgender individuals to serve in the military does not negatively impact the armed forces. A 2016 study by RAND Corporation, a U.S. policy research institute, found that allowing transgender people to serve in the military has a minimal impact on military readiness and healthcare prices. The Biden administration has said, "it shall be the policy of the United States to ensure that all transgender individuals who wish to serve in the United States military and can meet the appropriate standards shall be able to do so openly and free from discrimination." Biden's executive order has also revoked the Presidential Memorandum of March 23, 2018 (Military Service by Transgender Individuals), and the Presidential Memorandum of August 25, 2017 (Military Service by Transgender Individuals).