Congress will ban the use of taxpayer funds for gender transition surgeries for children who get their medical care through the military’s health care program, according to the text of legislation posted on Saturday evening.
This year’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) includes language that prohibits coverage under Tricare of transgender procedures that could “result in sterilization” of children. Section 708 of the NDAA states: “Medical interventions for the treatment of gender dysphoria that could result in sterilization may not be provided to a child under the age of 18,” according to a copy of the NDAA viewed by The Daily Wire.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson told The Daily Wire on Saturday that this is a “critical and necessary step” in the fight against “radical gender ideology.”
“Taxpayer dollars should never be used to support procedures and treatments that could permanently harm and sterilize young people,” Johnson told The Daily Wire. “In this year’s NDAA, we’re taking a critical and necessary step to protect the children of American service members from radical gender ideology and experimental drugs.”
He further promised: “House Republicans will continue to take action to protect America’s kids.”
BREAKING: The TRICARE program, which handles health care for the military, is banning transgender procedures that “could result in sterilization” of children. This is the final language of the NDAA legislation, which was just negotiated by leadership in the Senate & House: pic.twitter.com/C2J9eBk5ON
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) December 8, 2024
The news follows oral arguments heard by the Supreme Court over Tennessee’s law banning transgender procedures for children. Conservatives have rallied around Tennessee, hoping that its law paves the way for other states, or even the federal government, to pass similar laws.
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Immediately after the hearing, Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) introduced legislation that would ban doctors from performing life-altering and irreversible transgender procedures on kids across the country.
The provision in the NDAA was first slipped into the bill this summer. There was speculation that this would be stripped during negotiations between Republicans and Democrats, but the provision survived and is in the final agreed upon legislation. It appears on page 398 of the nearly 2,000-page piece of legislation, which can be viewed in full here.
