Overview
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced in a video Wednesday that testosterone testing will be added to the annual periodic health assessment and will be mandatory for service members aged 30 and older with younger troops able to opt in.
- Hegseth said treatment would be voluntary if doctors recommend testosterone replacement therapy, but the Department of Defense has not released start dates, testing protocols, or rules for handling results.
- Endocrinologists warn routine population screening departs from standard practice because testosterone varies by time of day and health status and clinical guidelines call for testing only when clear, persistent symptoms exist and low levels are confirmed on repeat morning blood tests.
- Medical experts also point to concrete risks from testosterone therapy, including reduced sperm production, higher red-blood-cell counts that thicken blood and possible cardiovascular effects, which will require monitoring if the program expands treatment.
- The move has drawn political pushback that questions its aims and equity, with some lawmakers urging hormone screening for women and analysts tying the policy to recent congressional reviews of military hormone protocols and the FDA’s June proposal to loosen TRT prescribing rules.