Judge prohibits US military from discharging HIV-positive service members
A US federal judge has ruled that the military can’t discharge HIV-positive service members. Since the mid-1980s, the US Defense Department has implemented restrictive regulations regarding people living with HIV.
Under the terms, recruits who have or test positive for HIV are barred from enlisting into the military. However, if an individual tests postive after enlisting, they will be allowed to stay in the service but will be banned from officer promotions.
In a report from the Yale Law Journal, a Navy instruction justified these archaic restrictions due to the inability to participate in “battlefield blood donor activities, or military donation programs.” However, after 30 years, US District Court Judge Leonie Brinkema finally put an end to the harmful regulations.
On 6 April, the Virginia-based official ruled that the military could no longer discharge or prevent promotions of HIV-positive individuals with an undetectable viral load.
