Under a new Biden administration scheme, the nation’s veterans hospitals would begin offering taxpayer-subsidized abortions, in apparent violation of federal and state laws.
U.S. Senator James Lankford (R-OK) blew the whistle on the proposed Interim Final Rule, which has not been made public, recently submitted by the Veterans Administration, pertaining to “reproductive health services” at veterans’ hospitals.
The proposed rule follows public statements by Secretary of Veterans Affairs Denis McDonough that he and President Joe Biden would issue rules ordering veterans hospitals to provide a “full slate” of abortion services in states where elective abortions are illegal or regulated after the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs ruling allowing states to set their own abortion laws.
“While the contents of the proposed IFR are not yet publicly available, this step forward in the regulatory process raises significant concern due to statements made by you and other officials within the VA asserting that the agency is seeking to provide abortion services to veterans and their families, despite it being prohibited under federal law,” writes Lankford in a letter to McDonough.
Such a rule would be illegal.
Not only is it against federal law to use taxpayer funds to provide abortions under the 1976 “Hyde amendment,” the Veterans Health Care Act of 1992 prohibits the VA from providing abortions.
“Only Congress can change federal law, and Congress has held for the past 30 years that the VA is not permitted to offer abortion services,” Lankford writes.
“Abortion is not and will never be healthcare. Healthcare protects life. Abortion takes life. Instead of promoting the taking of human life, I would challenge you, and others within the VA, to respect the dignity of our veterans and all of their family members, including unborn children, by ensuring services provided and funded by the VA are focused on true healthcare consistent with federal law,” writes Lankford
Along with ordering veterans hospitals to offer illegal abortions, liberals such as U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren proposed converting national parks into “abortion camps” where she proposed illegal abortions be performed in tents.
Michael Brigham
Michael Brigham has written for American Action News since the summer of 2019. His areas of expertise include foreign affairs, government, and politics, but regardless of the subject matter, he has a nose and an insatiable appetite for news. In his free time, he enjoys reading nonfiction, watching a mix of comedies and true crime documentaries, and spending time away from the swamp hiking in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains.
