A recent research published article in New England Journal of Medicine is suggesting that overall cost of military transition-related care, if it would be implemented, for transgender personnel that are serving in the United States armed forces, is believed to be very negligible or minor.
The research article reported that almost a total of 12,800 personnel that are serving currently in the United States military are forcefully hiding their real gender identities. If ever these individuals do need such medical care, the published research article reported that the overall cost the government would be facing is a mere 22 cents for every member every month or a total cost of $5.6 million per year.
Aaron Belkin, the author of the recently published research article, a San Francisco State University political science professor, had also shared an estimation regarding military transition-related care would only be $29,929 for every member over a span of six and a half years.
Belkin based his calculations of overall cost figures from cost of hormone therapy, surgery, or both with other important factors.
Belkin stated in the recently released article that even if the actual costs do exceed the reported estimates for transgender personnel in the military requiring care, the overall cost of providing such military transition-related care will still be negligible on the military’s total health budget.
He also explained that this is mainly because of the minimal overall number of personnel who will need treatment, added to the low cost of provisions it will yield. Belkin also underlined overall financial costs of such medical care for transgender personnel in the military would not take long because needed treatments are short.
The overall estimated costs of military transition-related care is recently published as a proposal, and is currently under consideration regarding Pentagon’s lifting of the ongoing ban on transgender individuals who are serving in the armed forces.
