A think tank at San Francisco State University convened a panel led by former Clinton administration Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders to evaluate the military’s ban on transgender people. Predictably, they determined that there “is no compelling medical reason” for the Armed Forces to prohibit transgenders from serving. They went even further, saying that the ban “is an expensive, damaging and unfair barrier to health care access for the approximately 15,450 transgender personnel who serve currently in the active, Guard and reserve components.” The panel claims that Barack Obama can lift the decade-old ban with only his pen; no approval from Congress necessary. However, at least according to Navy Lt. Cmdr. Nate Christensen, a defense department spokesman, “At this time there are no plans to change the department’s policy and regulations which do not allow transgender individuals to serve in the U.S. military.”