GOP Armed Services chair criticizes ban on gender-affirming care for minors in NDAA

House Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) on Tuesday lamented the inclusion of a provision banning coverage of gender-affirming care for minors in the annual defense authorization bill, saying that Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) did not consult him about it.

While Rogers did not oppose the underlying policy, he argued that the provision, which is fueling partisan division over the historically bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), was unnecessary given President-elect Trump will soon return to the White House.

“[Trump] is going to stop all these social, cultural issues from being embedded as policies. So my point is, I don't know why this is in the bill when Jan. 20, it's a moot point,” Rogers said Tuesday.

Asked if he thought Johnson should not have inserted the provision, Rogers said: “He didn’t talk to me about it.”

“My preference would have been that we just let the president, on Jan. 20, deal with these,” Rogers said, “which he's already indicated he's going to do.”

The House cleared a procedural hurdle for the NDAA earlier Tuesday, and it is set for passage in the chamber Wednesday before heading to the Senate.

“Typically we get a bipartisan product,” Rogers said. But on Wednesday, Rogers said, “it’ll be close.”

Text of the fiscal 2025 NDAA negotiated between the House and the Senate was released over the weekend. Johnson has touted the provision that applies to TRICARE, the health care program for service members, that 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.”

“We banned TRICARE from prescribing treatments that would ultimately sterilize our kids, and we gutted the DEI bureaucracy,” Johnson said of the NDAA in a press conference earlier on Tuesday, using an abbreviation for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs.

But the provision is prompting notable opposition from Democrats, including from House Armed Services Committee ranking member Adam Smith (D-Wash.) — who said Tuesday that he will vote against the NDAA over the transgender health care provision.

“Blanketly denying health care to people who need it — just because of a biased notion against transgender people — is wrong,” Smith said in a statement. “The inclusion of this harmful provision puts the lives of children at risk and may force thousands of service members to make the choice of continuing their military service or leaving to ensure their child can get the health care they need. For that reason, I will oppose final passage of the FY25 NDAA in its current form.”

Smith also took aim at Johnson.

“Speaker Johnson had a clear path to considering a bill that reflected the true spirit of bipartisan compromise that has ensured that Congress has provided for the common defense for the past 63 years,” Smith said. “Rather than take that path and ensure service members and military families get the support they need and deserve, he chose to pander to the most extreme elements of his party in an attempt to retain his speakership.”

The Republican-controlled House over the summer passed a version of the fiscal 2025 NDAA that included a number of “culture war” amendments, including a provision that prohibited TRICARE from covering any gender-affirming surgeries or hormone treatments, not just those for minors. Every House Republican, including Rogers, supported that amendment.

But Rogers clearly did not think that any similar provisions should end up in the final version.

Rogers said that Smith’s opposition to the bill over the provision did not surprise him.

“Adam [Smith] is doing exactly what I expect. I mean, he's been very up front about this,” Rogers said. “This stuff does not belong in our bill.”