Hegseth Orders Mandatory Testosterone Screening, Optional TRT for Troops 30 & Older
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Adam Gramegna
Published Jul 15, 2026, 3:47 PM EDT
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United States Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, right, speaks during a meeting of the North Atlantic Council in defense ministers format at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Thursday, June 18, 2026. (AP Photo\/Virginia Mayo)""<br>data-modal-id="single-image-modal"<br>data-modal-container-id="single-image-modal-container"<br>data-img-caption=""""<br>data-is-feature-img="true"
United States Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, right, speaks during a meeting of the North Atlantic Council in defense ministers format at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Thursday, June 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
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The Pentagon will begin screening active-duty service members 30 and older for testosterone deficiency every year, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Wednesday, framing the move as a readiness measure while leaving any resulting treatment up to the individual.<br>The screening will be added to the periodic health assessment that troops already complete each year, Hegseth said in a video posted on social media. Service members younger than 30 will be able to request the test voluntarily. While the screening will be mandatory for eligible troops, any treatment that follows—including testosterone replacement therapy, or TRT—will not be.<br>"I'm authorizing a new screening program for testosterone deficiency for our service members, ensuring you have the right testosterone levels to operate at your absolute best," Hegseth said in the video.<br>"If treatment is recommended, it's entirely your choice to receive testosterone replacement therapy," he added.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (left) and Kid Rock working outCredit: US Dept. of HHS, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Hegseth cast the initiative, which he branded "High-T," as part of the department's effort to maintain what he has repeatedly called the military's most decisive advantage: the individual war fighter.<br>"This initiative, it's not about artificial enhancement," Hegseth said. "It's about restoring and optimizing your natural capabilities, protecting your longevity, ensuring you have the biological foundation required to sustain the fight."<br>"The modern battlefield is brutal and unrelenting," he continued. "It requires and demands maximum psychological and mental readiness, and by addressing these health markers early, we're keeping you on the leading edge of lethality."
The New Policy
The periodic health assessment is a yearly evaluation that has been mandatory across the force since 2016, gauging a service member's medical and behavioral health along with their readiness to deploy.<br>Hegseth said the assessment itself is not changing. The department is adding testosterone screening to an exam troops already sit through.<br>For members 30 and older, that screening will be a standard part of the annual assessment. For those under 30, it will be available on request. A member whose results indicate a deficiency may be offered treatment, but the decision to pursue it, including TRT, rests with the individual.<br>Hegseth did not say when the program will begin. The Defense Department declined to comment further on the announcement, according to NOTUS, leaving open questions about how the screening will be implemented across the services and how results will be handled.
What Science Says
Men see their levels decline by roughly 1% a year after age 30 or 40, according to the Mayo Clinic—a change generally considered a normal part of aging.<br>A deficiency can contribute to fatigue, reduced muscle strength, lower libido or depression. Medical organizations recommend treatment only when low testosterone is confirmed by testing and paired with symptoms.<br>The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not approve testosterone replacement therapy for men who do not have a diagnosed form of hypogonadism, a condition tied to a malfunction of the organs that produce testosterone.
An aerial view of the Pentagon, Washington, D.C., May 11, 2021Credit: Air Force Staff Sgt. Brittany A. Chase, DOD, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Interest in the issue is not new to the Pentagon. A provision in the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) asked the defense secretary to brief Congress on the military's available treatments for low testosterone and its existing testing and screening protocols, according to Task & Purpose.<br>Special operations veterans have also raised low testosterone as a health concern, linking it to a cluster of physical and mental health issues sometimes called "Operator Syndrome."<br>The "High-T" label Hegseth chose echoes a theme...