Attorney General Kwame Raoul joined a multistate coalition of 23 attorneys general in filing a comment letter supporting the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) interim final rule that removes exclusions on abortion counseling and establishes broader access to abortion care for veterans and their beneficiaries.
The VA’s new interim final rule, Improving Access to Abortion and Abortion Counseling for Veterans and Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) Beneficiaries, will permit veterans and their families to access abortion counseling for all pregnancies. The rule will also ensure access to abortion services when a patient’s life or health is threatened, as well as in cases of self-reported rape or incest. In the comment letter, Raoul and the attorneys general support the VA’s efforts to increase reproductive freedom by removing barriers to essential medical care.
“Those who have served in the military have made countless sacrifices to protect our freedoms. In return, our military veterans deserve the protection of their rights to reproductive freedom,” Raoul said. “I commend the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for its new rule ensuring access to abortion care for veterans and their families, regardless of what state they live in. I will not stop defending their rights, and the rights of all women, to access abortion care.
On Sept. 2, in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade, the VA announced an interim final rule regarding abortion. The rule amends the VA’s medical regulations to remove the exclusion on abortion services and to establish exceptions to the exclusion on abortion in the medical benefits package for veterans and for CHAMPVA beneficiaries. Since the Supreme Court’s decision, at least 14 states have banned or restricted abortion care, while others are still proposing new restrictions.
The VA explains that such restrictions jeopardize “the lives and health of pregnant veterans and CHAMPVA beneficiaries in these states.” In response, the VA rule seeks to ensure that veterans and their families, regardless of their state of residence, may obtain medically-necessary abortion care when the life or the health of the pregnant veteran would be endangered or if the pregnancy is the result of an act of rape or incest.
In the comment letter, Raoul and the coalition of attorneys general express their strong support for the VA’s effort to remove barriers to this essential medical care. The rule fills a significant gap in health care for an important population, offering veterans and their families access to the same health care services available to many civilians. The rule will impact an estimated 53%, or more than 240,000, U.S. service members and veterans of reproductive age living in states that have already banned abortion or are likely to soon ban abortion.
Veterans of reproductive age, in particular, have high rates of chronic medical and mental health conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, severe hypertension and renal disease – all of which could increase the health risks associated with pregnancy. It is critical these veterans have access to the tools to protect their lives and well-being, including a full range of reproductive care and counseling, as well as medically-necessary abortion care.
Raoul and the coalition also contend the VA’s rule is a necessary step to alleviate the strain on the health care infrastructure of states that protect abortion. States like Illinois have become havens for those in need of abortion services, as out-of-state residents specifically travel to Illinois for abortion care. Even before the overturning of Roe v. Wade, states’ abortion restrictions forced many pregnant persons to travel out of their home states for care. In 2021, approximately one in 10 abortions were performed on pregnant individuals who had traveled across state lines to obtain abortion care.
When more severe abortion restrictions took effect after the Dobbs decision, women from anti-choice states began crossing state lines in even greater numbers, crowding waiting rooms in pro-choice states, such as Illinois, and leading to longer waiting times for this time-sensitive care. By expanding access to abortions, even if just for veterans and their family members, Raoul and the coalition point out that the VA rule will greatly assist pro-choice states in addressing the rapidly-expanding need to protect the health of their residents.
In filing the comment letter, Attorney General Raoul joins the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.
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