Pentagon announces testosterone booster shots for ‘warriors’ with low levels
Pete Hegseth (Getty Images)
Pete Hegseth has announced that the Pentagon will be launching a testosterone screening and treatment programme that will offer booster shots to personnel with low levels, despite previously saying gender-affirming care for trans people was too costly.
Hegseth, the US Secretary of War, announced the new initiative on 15 July in a video titled ‘The High-T Department of War’.
“At the Department of War, we have the most elite warriors on the face of the Earth. Every single day, you are pushed to your absolute physical and mental limits to master the profession of arms. We demand your all, and you give it,” he said in the video.
“But while we invest heavily in our weapons systems, platforms and gear, our most decisive tactical advantage will always be the individual war fighter. We have a sacred duty to maintain that advantage, which is why we must constantly look for new ways to optimise your performance, your resilience, and your long-term health.”
Hegseth continued: “To meet that commitment today, I’m authorising a new screening programme for testosterone deficiency for our service members, ensuring you have the right testosterone levels to operate at your absolute best. Because it’s well-established science that, as we age, testosterone levels often naturally drop.”
He went on to explain that service members aged 30 and older will be tested annually as part of their periodic health assessment, and that those under 30 can voluntarily choose to get tested.
If treatment is recommended by medical professionals, the personnel with low testosterone levels will then be given the choice whether or not to receive hormone replacement therapy.
“This initiative, it’s not about artificial enhancement,” Hegseth continued. “It’s about restoring and optimising your natural capabilities, protecting your longevity, and ensuring that you have the biological foundation required to sustain the fight. We owe our warriors the absolute best medical care in the world, and this programme delivers on that obligation.
Keeping soldiers ‘on the leading edge of lethality’
“Taking care of your long-term health ensures that you remain strong, resilient and capable, not just for your next deployment but for the rest of your life, so you can thrive long after you take off the uniform.”
Hegseth concluded by saying that by addressing the medical health markers early, the Department of War is keeping soldiers “on the leading edge of lethality” and giving them “the same level of support that [they] give this nation”.
The announcement has come under fire from many trans people and allies, who have pointed out that testosterone boosters are no different from the kind of hormone replacement therapy that trans people typically receive.
However, the US government has previously stated that the comparatively small amount of military spending that has gone on care associated with gender dysphoria was too costly.
Hegseth’s X video received related criticism in the replies and quotes. “I thought you were against gender-affirming care,” one user wrote.
“Which member of the admin just bought stock in a testosterone company?” said another.
“Transphobic man wearing a face full of bronzer advertises new hormone replacement therapy options for cisgender male troops. Everything is gender,” a third replied.
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