Senate Dems Demand VA Reverse 'Cruel' Abortion Ban

A majority of Senate Democrats on Friday called on the Department of Veterans Affairs to reverse the near total abortion ban implemented recently by the Trump administration.

In a letter to VA Secretary Doug Collins, 33 Senate Democrats decried what they called a “cruel” and “shameful” policy change.

“In light of the devastating harm this will cause to veterans and their loved ones, especially those living in states with extreme abortion bans, we urge you to rescind this policy without delay,” they wrote in the letter obtained exclusively by CQ Roll Call.

The letter was organized by Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, Patty Murray of Washington, Mazie K. Hirono of Hawaii and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. Among its co-signers are Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., the ranking member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.

In December, the VA moved forward with implementing a policy it announced earlier in the year that bans the department from providing abortions or abortion counseling in nearly all circumstances except if the mother’s life is in danger.

The ban reverses a policy the Biden administration put in place after the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision allowed states to ban abortion. Under the Biden administration policy, the VA could provide abortions in cases of rape, incest or when the life or health of the mother was at risk.

The Trump administration has argued the Biden administration policy was illegal since it acted without Congress and that the new ban is simply a return to earlier policy.

“The VA was, up until ’22, was not doing any abortions at all,” Collins said at a recent Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. “This was a decision by the previous administration to bend the law, to go back on something that had been over generations of both Democrat and Republican administration, that the VA was not in the issue of abortion.”

In their letter Friday, Democrats hammered the VA for banning abortion even in cases of rape or incest, arguing that doing so could compound veterans’ mental health issues.

“Our veterans put their lives on the line to safeguard our freedoms, yet you and President Trump — who has never served a day in his life — are denying our heroes the care they have earned,” they wrote. “Implementing this shameful and indefensible policy over the winter holidays, without public notice, and before finalizing your proposed rule adds further insult to injury.”

The letter is the latest efforts from Democrats to call attention to the ban and try to reverse it. Late last month, a group of Democratic senators filed a resolution of disapproval under the Congressional Review Act that would repeal the VA abortion ban rule the administration finalized in December. House Democrats also filed a similar resolution.

Under the CRA, Senate Democrats can force a vote on their resolution once 30 senators sign a discharge petition. Such resolutions aren't subject to the typical 60-vote threshold to advance legislation in the Senate, where they can pass by simple-majority vote. The CRA does not have a similar fast-track process for Democrats to force a vote in the House.