SRES408-119

That the Senate— recognizes September 20, 2025, as National LGBTQ+ Servicemembers and Veterans Day; celebrates the contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (referred to in this resolution as LGBTQ+) servicemembers and veterans who have served in the Armed Forces; regrets the harm done to LGBTQ+ servicemembers and veterans under the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy and earlier policies, bans on transgender servicemembers, and other policies that discriminate based on sexual orientation and gender identity; recognizes how other than honorable and dishonorable discharges given to LGBTQ+ servicemembers on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity— prematurely terminated the careers of LGBTQ+ servicemembers in the Armed Forces; subjected LGBTQ+ servicemembers to the trauma of investigations and criminal charges; unfairly denied LGBTQ+ servicemembers the honor associated with military service; deprived LGBTQ+ servicemembers of benefits those servicemembers have earned and deserve as veterans; and continue to cause LGBTQ+ servicemembers dignitary harm; urges the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense— to implement policy changes that restore justice and right wrongs caused by past and present government-sponsored discrimination; and to conduct further outreach to LGBTQ+ service member and veteran communities to ensure that those discharged based on their sexual orientation and gender identity can receive their benefits; urges the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense to ensure that transgender veterans and servicemembers and their families have access to the full range of health care, including gender-affirming care; and urges the Department of Veterans Affairs to remove the exclusion of gender-affirming surgery from the Veterans Affairs Medical Benefits Package.