The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) submitted an interim rule to the Federal Register on Thursday night, allowing abortions to be committed in hospitals on federal property, even in states that protect preborn children from the violent procedures.
Under the new rule, pregnant veterans or eligible dependents can undergo abortions in cases of rape, incest, or if the health of the mother is in jeopardy. VA physicians will also be able to counsel pregnant veterans on abortion, and coordinate abortions under other circumstances with abortionists in the private sector.
“This is a patient safety decision. Pregnant Veterans and VA beneficiaries deserve to have access to world-class reproductive care when they need it most,” VA Secretary Denis McDonough said in a statement. “That’s what our nation owes them, and that’s what we at VA will deliver.”
Dr. Shereef Elnahal, VA’s Under Secretary for Health, added that pro-life laws are creating a “medical emergency,” and “offering this care will save Veterans’ health and lives, and there is nothing more important than that.” A press release on the new policy also further claimed that this is a major health issue for veterans.
Access to medically necessary abortions is essential for preserving the life and health of Veterans and VA beneficiaries. Restricting access to abortion care has well-documented adverse health consequences, including increased risk of loss of future fertility, significant morbidity, or death. Veterans are also at greater risk of experiencing pregnancy-related complications due to increased rates of chronic health conditions. Therefore, to protect the life and health of pregnant Veterans and eligible beneficiaries, VA determined that it was necessary to provide access to abortion counseling and — in some cases — abortions.
There is, in actuality, little data showing that access to abortion improves maternal mortality or morbidity rates, and abortion is not health care; it is the purposeful killing of a preborn human being.
Live Action president and CEO Lila Rose stated on Twitter, “Section 106 of the Veterans Health Care Act of 1992 directs the VA to provide women with ‘general reproductive health care … not including … abortions.’ This decision will not only result in the death of children but also violates our basic rule of law. Our VA Hospitals, which should be committed to healing and helping veterans, will now be in the business of killing their children. What greater war crime than the intentional slaying of an innocent child? A dark day for our military, our healthcare system, and our nation.”
Section 106 of the Veterans’ Health Care Act of 1992
She added, “The Biden administration’s commitment to abortion everywhere and at any cost is barbaric.”
BREAKING:
The Veterans Administration will start committing abortions, even in states where human life has been protected, and abortion made illegal.
This is a gravely immoral, unjust, and illegal move by the Biden Administration.
— Lila Rose (@LilaGraceRose) September 2, 2022
Pro-abortion lawmakers and officials have made it clear in recent months that their goal is to make abortion available for women serving in the military, as well as for veterans. A House bill introduced over the summer would allow the Department of Defense to fund abortions and have them committed on base. Yet this will only make an existing problem worse; female service members already experience pressure to abort if they become pregnant, while receiving little support to help them parent.
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