Pentagon data shows record erectile dysfunction prescriptions to troops in 2025

The US military prescribed a record number of erectile dysfunction drugs to active-duty personnel in 2025, according to newly released Pentagon data, even as the armed forces continue to bar gender-affirming care for trans service members.

The figures, obtained by the

New York Post

through a Freedom of Information Act request, show 108,332 prescriptions for erectile dysfunction were dispensed to active military personnel last year.

Across the wider military community — including dependents of service members and veterans — the Pentagon recorded 639,355 prescriptions in 2025.

The numbers come as the US continues to enforce a policy that prevents military clinics and insurance from covering gender-affirming care, including for veterans.

Advocates have pointed to the apparent contradiction, arguing that erectile dysfunction medication for cisgender men could also be seen as gender-affirming care.

In February, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced a rule banning gender-affirming medical care for trans service members and blocking new enlistments for anyone with a history of gender dysphoria.

That policy is being challenged in

Doe v Department of Defence

, a case brought by GLAD Law and the National Centre for LGBTQ Rights on behalf of three families who say they had accessed care for their transgender children through the military health system for more than a decade.

“President Trump has illegally overstepped his authority by abruptly cutting off necessary medical care for military families,” said NCLR legal director Shannon Minter.

“This lawless directive is part of a dangerous pattern of this administration ignoring legal requirements and abandoning our service members.”

A separate ban on trans people enlisting in the military is also under challenge in two other cases,

Talbott v United States

and

Shilling v United States

.

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