Veterans Affairs to phase out gender dysphoria medical treatments
"I mean no disrespect to anyone, but VA should not be focused on helping veterans attempt to change their sex. The vast majority of veterans and Americans agree, and that is why this is the right decision," said VA Secretary Doug Collins.
"All eligible veterans, including trans-identified veterans, will always be welcome at VA and will always receive the benefits and services they've earned under the law," Collins added. "But if veterans want to attempt to change their sex, they can do so on their own dime."
While the VA has never provided sex-change surgeries, it has offered cross-sex hormone therapy, voice training and gender-affirming prosthetics.
The VA said funding, allocated to any gender dysphoria medical treatments, would be redirected to help paralyzed veterans and amputees "regain their independence."
President Trump signed the "Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government" executive order shortly after his inauguration on Jan. 20.
"It is the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female," the executive order states. "These sexes are not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality."
In addition to phasing out treatments for gender dysphoria, the VA said bathrooms, locker rooms and patient rooms are now designated by male or female, or unisex for single-person spaces.
The Modern Military Association of America blasted Monday's announcement, calling the gender dysphoria rollback "a direct assault on the well-being of vulnerable LGBTQ+ veterans, jeopardizing their access to essential care."
"Combined with the administration's planned cut of 80,000 VA employees, these actions demonstrate a blatant disregard for the nation's commitment to those who have served," said Rachel Branaman, executive director of the Modern Military Association of America.
Currently, there are more than 134,000 transgender veterans in the United States, according to the National Center for Transgender Equality. Fewer than 9,000 of the VA department's 9.1 million veterans, enrolled in medical care services, are believed to be transgender.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
20 minutes ago
- Yahoo
DC unemployment rate is the highest in the US for the third straight month
WASHINGTON (AP) — The seasonably adjusted unemployment rate in Washington, D.C., was the highest in the nation for the third straight month, according to new data released Tuesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. D.C.'s jobless rate reached 6% in July, a reflection of the mass layoffs of federal workers, ushered in by President Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, earlier this year. An overall decline in international tourism — which is a main driver of D.C.'s income — is also expected to have an impact on the climbing unemployment rate in the District. Neighboring states also saw an uptick in unemployment rates in July — with Maryland at 3.4% (up from 3.3%) and Virginia at 3.6% (up from 3.5%), according to the state-by-state jobless figures. Since the beginning of Donald Trump's second term, federal workers across government agencies have been either laid off or asked to voluntarily resign from their positions. Those actions have drawn litigation across the federal government by labor unions and advocacy groups. In July, the Supreme Court cleared the way for Trump administration plans to downsize the federal workforce further, despite warnings that critical government services will be lost and hundreds of thousands of federal employees will be out of their jobs. The latest D.C. Office of Revenue Analysis figures show that payments made to unemployed federal workers have been climbing month-over-month. In April, unemployed workers received $2.01 million in unemployment payments. By June, that figure reached $2.57 million. The DC Fiscal Policy Institute argues that the federal worker layoffs will exacerbate D.C.'s Black-white unemployment ratio. The latest nationwide unemployment rate according to the BLS is 4.2% — South Dakota had the lowest jobless rate in July at 1.9%. In addition, international tourism, a major source of D.C., to the U.S. is declining. Angered by Trump's tariffs and rhetoric, and alarmed by reports of tourists being arrested at the border, some citizens of other countries are staying away from the U.S. and choosing to travel elsewhere — notably British, German and South American tourists, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council. A May report from the organization states that international visitor spending to the U.S. is projected to fall to just under $169 billion this year, down from $181 billion in 2024 — which is a 22.5% decline compared to the previous peak. The latest jobs numbers come after the Republican president and a group of GOP governors have deployed National Guard troops to D.C. in the hopes of reducing crime and boosting immigration enforcement. City officials say crime is already falling in the nation's capital.
Yahoo
20 minutes ago
- Yahoo
‘Completely false': Nicolle Wallace fact-checks Trump's attacks on mail-in voting
Donald Trump has launched his latest attack on America's elections, vowing to sign an executive order to end what he referred to as the 'corrupt' practice of mail-in voting. 'You can never have a real democracy with mail-in ballots,' Trump said during an Oval Office meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday. Earlier in the day, the president also falsely stated on social media that the United States was 'the only Country in the World that uses Mail-In Voting.' Following those remarks, Nicolle Wallace offered a fact-check of Trump's baseless claims about U.S. elections. After Wallace played a short clip of Trump's comments, she told viewers, 'We're going to just cut it right there, because all of that is completely false,' noting that the 'United States is one of many countries that uses mail-in voting, including Canada, the U.K., Germany, Australia and Switzerland.' The 'Deadline: White House' host also pointed out that the president himself has voted by mail in past elections. Wallace also took issue with Trump's repeated false claims about widespread voter fraud in U.S. elections, which she said he had 'zero evidence' to back up. Wallace rebuked Trump for spending time during a 'high-stakes diplomacy' meeting talking about 'one of his longest-standing and most dangerous, unfounded delusions that he didn't actually lose the 2020 presidential election.' But Wallace didn't stop there, pointing out a major hole in the president's plan to end mail-in voting by executive order. 'Another fact-check,' she continued, 'Trump literally does not have the power to do any of this. According to the Constitution, the power to set the 'Times, places and manner' of elections lies with the states, and only Congress has the ability to override state laws on voting.' You can watch Wallace's fact-check in the clip at the top of the page. This article was originally published on
Chicago Tribune
22 minutes ago
- Chicago Tribune
US pediatricians' new COVID-19 shot recommendations differ from CDC advice
NEW YORK — For the first time in 30 years, the American Academy of Pediatrics is substantially diverging from U.S. government vaccine recommendations. The group's new COVID-19 recommendations — released Tuesday — come amid a tumultuous year for public health, as vaccine skeptics have come into power in the new Trump administration and government guidance has become increasingly confusing. This isn't going to help, acknowledged Dr. James Campbell, vice chair of the AAP infectious diseases committee. 'It is going to be somewhat confusing. But our opinion is we need to make the right choices for children to protect them,' he added. The AAP is strongly recommending COVID-19 shots for children ages 6 months to 2 years. Shots also are advised for older children if parents want their kids vaccinated, the AAP said. That differs from guidance established under U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., which doesn't recommend the shots for healthy children of any age but says kids may get the shots in consultation with physicians. Children ages 6 months to 2 years are at high risk for severe illness from COVID-19, and it was important that recommendations continue to emphasize the need for them to get vaccinated, said Campbell, a University of Maryland infectious diseases expert. Vaccinations also are recommended for older children who have chronic lung diseases or other conditions that put them at higher risk for severe disease, the AAP said. In a statement, Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson Andrew Nixon said 'the AAP is undermining national immunization policymaking with baseless political attacks.' He accused the group of putting commercial interests ahead of public health, noting that vaccine manufacturers have been donors to the AAP's Friends of Children Fund. The fund is currently paying for projects on a range of topics, including health equity and prevention of injuries and deaths from firearms. The 95-year-old Itasca, Illinois-based organization has issued vaccination recommendations for children since the 1930s. In 1995, it synced its advice with recommendations made by the federal government's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There have been a few small differences between AAP and CDC recommendations since then. For example, the AAP has advised that children get HPV vaccinations starting at age 9; the CDC says that's OK but has emphasized vaccinations at ages 11 and 12. But in 30 years, this is the first time the recommendations have differed 'in a significant or substantial way,' Campbell said. Until recently, the CDC — following recommendations by infectious disease experts — has been urging annual COVID-19 boosters for all Americans ages 6 months and older. But in May, U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that COVID-19 vaccines are no longer recommended for healthy children and pregnant women. A few days later, the CDC issued language that healthy children may get the shots, but that there was no longer a 'should' recommendation. The idea that healthy older kids may be able to skip COVID-19 boosters has been brewing for some time among public health experts. As the COVID-19 pandemic has waned, experts have increasingly discussed the possibility of focusing vaccination efforts on people 65 and older — who are among those most as risk for death and hospitalization. A CDC expert panel in June was set to make recommendations about the fall shots. Among the options the panel was considering was whether suggest shots for high-risk groups but still giving lower-risk people the choice to get vaccinated. But Kennedy bypassed the group, and also decided to dismiss the 17-member panel and appoint his own, smaller panel, that included vaccine skeptics. Kennedy also later excluded the AAP, the American Medical Association and other top medical organizations from working with the advisers to establish vaccination recommendations. Kennedy's new vaccine panel has yet to vote on COVID-19 shot recommendations. The panel did endorse continuing to recommend fall flu vaccinations, but also made a decision that led to another notable difference with the AAP. The new advisory panel voted that people should only get flu vaccines that are packaged as single doses and do not contain the preservative thimerosal. The AAP said there is no evidence of harm from the preservative, and recommended doctors use any licensed flu vaccine product that's appropriate for the patient.
