Pro-Life Victory: VA to Stop Abortions in Veterans’ Hospitals
On August 1, the Trump Administration quietly announced a rule change end abortions at hospitals run by the Department of Veterans Affairs and stop paying for abortions and abortion counseling for veterans and their dependents.
Up until September of 2022, VA hospitals generally did not perform or fund abortions except to save the life of the mother. Under the Biden Administration, the VA added broad “health” exceptions for abortion as part of an effort to expand abortion after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
Health exceptions for abortion are notoriously vague and can lead to abortion on demand in many cases. That’s why states like Arkansas limit abortion to situations where the mother’s life is at risk instead of using a broader “health” exception.
The Biden Administration’s 2022 rules authorized VA hospitals to perform these abortions regardless of state pro-life laws. That meant a hospital in a state like Arkansas might perform abortions that would otherwise be illegal under state law.
Needless to say, the Biden Administration’s 2022 abortion rules were deeply flawed.
The VA’s new proposal says,
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is proposing to reinstate the full exclusion on abortions and abortion counseling from the medical benefits package, which was removed in 2022. Before that time, this exclusion had been firmly in place since the medical benefits package was first established in 1999. VA is also proposing to reinstate the exclusions on abortion and abortion counseling for Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA) that were removed in 2022. We take this action to ensure that VA provides only needed medical services to our nation’s heroes and their families.
This rule change would help protect women and unborn babies from abortion under the Department of Veterans Affairs. That is a major, pro-life victory.
The federal government has no business trying to overrule state pro-life laws or turn VA hospitals into abortion facilities. Family Council appreciates all of the pro-life leaders who have stood against these bad federal policies, and we appreciate the Trump administration’s decision to rescind President Biden’s flawed rules from 2022.
Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.
8th Circuit Bolsters Free Speech for All
The following press release is from our friends at Alliance Defending Freedom:
The following quote may be attributed to Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Tyson Langhofer, director of the ADF Center for Academic Freedom, regarding a decision Wednesday by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit in Melton v. City of Forrest City, a case concerning a firefighter who had his employment terminated after he posted a pro-life image on social media, ruling that the firefighter’s free-speech claim should go to a jury:
“All Americans should be free to express viewpoints and ideas without fear of government punishment. When the government decides which topics are appropriate for debate, we all lose. The 8th Circuit rightly recognized that the First Amendment’s bar on heckler’s vetoes protects the full-bodied discussions necessary for public debate. Governments can’t monopolize the marketplace of ideas, otherwise organizations like The Douglass Leadership Institute, The Radiance Foundation, and Speak for Life, which stand for life—especially in Black communities that are disproportionately affected by abortion—wouldn’t be free to speak without fear of government reprisal. The court’s decision allows free speech to flourish for all.”
“The problem is that there was no showing that Melton’s post had an impact on the fire department itself,” the 8th Circuit wrote in its ruling. “No current firefighter complained or confronted him about it. Nor did any co-worker or supervisor refuse to work with him. Granting summary judgment based on such ‘vague and conclusory’ concerns, without more, runs the risk of constitutionalizing a heckler’s veto.”
In February 2024, ADF attorneys filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case on behalf of The Douglass Leadership Institute, The Radiance Foundation, and Speak for Life.
- Pronunciation guide: Langhofer (LANG’-hoff-ur)
Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.
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