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Letter: Trump’s veil for discrimination

Donald Trump’s claim that transgender individuals are no longer welcome in the U.S. military due to “medical costs and disruption” is purely a veil for discrimination. Such a ban is derogatory and demeans the honor and valor of past, present and future transgender military service members.

Care for transgender active-duty service members costs an estimated $5-10 million dollars out of a health care budget of around $50 billion, and represents a negligible cost in the overall Department of Defense budget (0.000016 percent). Our military allies in the U.K,, Australia, Israel and Canada allow openly transgender people to serve and have reported no significant impacts on operational effectiveness, cohesion or readiness.

As a physician at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Salt Lake City, I provide health care services for many LGBTQ veterans. I have witnessed their incredible bravery, resilience and dedication to our country. Unfortunately, I have also witnessed the repercussions of disproportionately high levels of discrimination, harassment and assault among LGBTQ veterans, often at the hands of their own comrades.

Perpetuating a culture of intolerance and exclusion will perpetuate this cycle of violence and is not the right path for our modern military or our country.

Sarah Knish Hall, M.D.

Salt Lake City