Pentagon pauses HIV-positive recruit training while signaling it may soon reinstate a ban on their enlistment
- Posted on January 17, 2026
- By CNN
- 2 Views
Pentagon pauses HIV-positive recruit training while signaling it may soon reinstate a ban on their enlistment

The Pentagon has ordered the military command that oversees new recruits’ enlistment to hold off on initial training for people who are HIV-positive and recently enlisted in the military, CNN has learned, saying that a decision on reinstating a Defense Department ban on their joining the military was “expected in the next few weeks.”