U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Veterans' Affairs
10/14/2022 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/14/2022 13:30
Chairman Takano Leads Public Comment Letter on VA’s IFR
October 14, 2022
Chairman Takano Leads Public Comment Letter on VA's IFR
Press Contact
Miguel R. Salazar (202) 779-1486
RIVERSIDE, CA - Last week, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) and 54 of his colleagues sent a public comment letter expressing support for the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) Interim Final Rule (IFR), which allows for abortion counseling and abortions in cases of rape, incest, and health of the woman.
"This is a long-overdue step in improving care for women veterans, and in furthering VA's ongoing efforts to build trust with women veterans, who for decades have had to independently find, coordinate, and finance life-saving medical care that should have been provided by VA," the members wrote."Women veterans have earned and deserve access to these comprehensive reproductive services no matter where they live. We strongly support this regulatory action because it is simply the right thing to do to ensure veterans who have served our country have the opportunity to be fully informed partners in their own healthcare decisions."
Chairman Takano previously called VA's IFR "a strong first step" and acknowledged that more needs to be done to ensure all veterans have equitable and unrestricted access to the full spectrum of reproductive healthcare.
Full text of the members' comment can be found here.
"This is a long-overdue step in improving care for women veterans, and in furthering VA's ongoing efforts to build trust with women veterans, who for decades have had to independently find, coordinate, and finance life-saving medical care that should have been provided by VA," the members wrote."Women veterans have earned and deserve access to these comprehensive reproductive services no matter where they live. We strongly support this regulatory action because it is simply the right thing to do to ensure veterans who have served our country have the opportunity to be fully informed partners in their own healthcare decisions."
Chairman Takano previously called VA's IFR "a strong first step" and acknowledged that more needs to be done to ensure all veterans have equitable and unrestricted access to the full spectrum of reproductive healthcare.
Full text of the members' comment can be found here.
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