Trump administration pushed out US military health agency head, officials say

By Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Army Lieutenant General Telita Crosland, the head of the military's health agency and one of the most senior Black female officers in the Army, was forced to retire on Friday, two sources told Reuters.

The move comes just a week after President Donald Trump fired the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and other senior officers, in an unprecedented shake-up.

Although Crosland's retirement was publicly announced, Reuters is first to report that she was forced to end her 32-year military career.

On Friday, Stephen Ferrara, the acting assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, said that Crosland had started her retirement.

"I want to thank Crosland for her dedication to the nation, to the military health system, and to Army medicine for the past 32 years," Ferrara said in a statement.

But a current and former official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Crosland had been told that she must retire. She was not given a reason why, the officials, said.

The Pentagon declined to say why Crosland retired and referred Reuters to the Defense Health Agency. The DHA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has moved quickly to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at the Pentagon, arguing that they are divisive.

Earlier this month, Hegseth said he thought that "diversity is our strength" was the "single dumbest phrase in military history."

Hegseth has also ended commemorations of identity month celebrations, like Black History Month and Women’s History Month.

Diversity, equity and inclusion programs seek to promote opportunities for women, ethnic minorities and other traditionally underrepresented groups. Civil rights advocates argue that such programs, generally backed by Democrats, are needed to address longstanding inequities and structural racism.

In an article posted on the health agency's website last year, Crosland downplayed her identity as a Black female in the Army.

"I don't actually frame anything I do day-in and day-out in the terms of my race or my gender. That's always been a hard question for me to answer," she said.

"It's not because I don't understand the responsibility … certainly, there are challenges that come from being a woman in the military, there are challenges that come from being African American, and being in the military."

(Reporting by Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart; Editing by Sandra Maler and Leslie Adler)