Viagra costs the military five times as much as transgender troops' medical care would
President Donald Trump announced on Twitter he would ban transgender individuals from serving in the military because of their “tremendous medical costs.”
After consultation with my Generals and military experts, please be advised that the United States Government will not accept or allow......
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 26, 2017
....Transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military. Our military must be focused on decisive and overwhelming.....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 26, 2017
....victory and cannot be burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail. Thank you
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 26, 2017
Trump’s announcement did not cite specific numbers, but the military has looked at the cost of medical care for transgender servicemembers before.
A study by the Rand Corp. estimated transgender troops would cost the government $8.4 million per year, based on the number of transgender servicemembers and the cost of gender transition-related treatments.
For perspective, the military spends $6.4 billion annually on troops' medical care. This includes $84 million on erectile dysfunction medicines, ten times as much as the total cost of care for transgender servicemembers. An analysis by the Military Times found Viagra alone cost the military $41.6 million - approximately five times what the government would spend on transgender troops.
Read more:
>> These 18 countries allow transgender people in their militaries
>> What is the difference between transgender and transsexual?
