The Pentagon confirmed Tuesday that it will pay for a soldier’s gender reassignment surgery for the first time, according to multiple reports.
Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White said in a statement shared by a BuzzFeed News reporter that an active-duty military member received sex-reassignment surgery Tuesday in a private hospital.
“Because this service member had already begun a sex-reassignment course of treatment, and the treating doctor deemed this surgery medically necessary, a waiver was approved by the director of the Defense Health Agency,” White said. “The Supplemental Health Care Program will cover this surgery in accordance with the Department’s interim guidance on transgender Service members.”
NBC News, which reported the story earlier on Tuesday, said the service member is an infantry officer who identifies as female.
{mosads}In August, President Trump signed a memo to bar transgender people from enlisting in the military, and to stop the military from paying for gender reassignment surgery. He originally called for the ban on transgender troops in a series of tweets in July.
A federal court partially blocked the ban last month, including the prohibition on using funds for gender reassignment surgery.