“The Defense Department’s current regulations regarding transgender service members are outdated and are causing uncertainty that distracts commanders from our core missions,” Defense Secretary Ash Carter said in announcing the six-month review.

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WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Ash Carter has ordered a six-month review of the military’s policies banning transgender people from serving openly. “The Defense Department’s current regulations regarding transgender service members are outdated and are causing uncertainty that distracts commanders from our core missions,” Carter said in a statement.

In announcing the review, Carter took a rather direct tone, noting, “[W]e have transgender soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines - real, patriotic Americans - who I know are being hurt by an outdated, confusing, inconsistent approach that’s contrary to our value of service and individual merit.”

A source familiar with the Pentagon’s decisionmaking on the issue told BuzzFeed News recently that Carter met with President Obama last week to discuss the issue. Obama made a rare visit to the Pentagon on July 6, where he spoke at a press briefing about the current military campaign against ISIS.

In the Monday evening statement, Carter announced a six-month review to assess “the policy and readiness implications of welcoming transgender persons to serve openly.” Acting Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Brad Carson will head the group. Notably, Carter said in his statement that the group “will start with the presumption that transgender persons can serve openly without adverse impact on military effectiveness and readiness, unless and except where objective, practical impediments are identified.”