Pentagon Tightens 1-Year Shaving Waiver Rule as Hegseth Presses Grooming and Fitness Standards
Updated
Updated · CBS New York · Jul 10
Pentagon Tightens 1-Year Shaving Waiver Rule as Hegseth Presses Grooming and Fitness Standards
3 articles · Updated · CBS New York · Jul 10
Summary
Nine months after Pete Hegseth told top commanders there would be no more “beardos” or “fat troops,” Pentagon officials are intensifying enforcement of hair, weight and fitness rules because he believes leaders have not acted fast enough.
A Defense Department policy now tells commanders to start separation proceedings for active-duty and reserve personnel who still need medical shaving waivers after more than 1 year of treatment, with waivers generally capped at 90-day increments.
The Pentagon is also revising body-composition measurements and framing shaving as a readiness issue tied to respirator seals, discipline and deployability rather than appearance alone.
That push has revived objections from troops and veterans who say stricter enforcement could sweep in legitimate religious exemptions and medical cases such as pseudofolliculitis barbae, which studies estimate affects 45% to 83% of Black men.
Over roughly 18 months as defense secretary, Hegseth has made appearance standards part of a broader campaign to restore what he calls the military’s “warrior ethos,” though critics argue the issue should be handled at lower command levels.