Defiant Pentagon Chief Lloyd Austin on Friday said he will evaluate the Defense Department’s policies in response to the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v Wade.
According to federal law, troops cannot use their Tricare health insurance to pay for abortions.
Furthermore, female servicemembers will only have access to private medical facilities that perform abortions in states that allow the procedure following the Supreme Court’s ruling on Roe v Wade.
Lloyd Austin is now evaluating the Defense Department’s policies to make sure female servicemembers are provided ‘seamless access to reproductive health care as permitted by federal law.’
“Nothing is more important to me or to this Department than the health and well-being of our Service members, the civilian workforce and DOD families,” the Pentagon chief announced. “I am committed to taking care of our people and ensuring the readiness and resilience of our Force. The Department is examining this decision closely and evaluating our policies to ensure we continue to provide seamless access to reproductive health care as permitted by federal law.”
Politico reported:
Female troops seeking the procedure already face steep hurdles to getting the care they need: They cannot get abortions at military medical facilities, and federal law also prevents troops from using their Tricare health insurance to cover the cost of the procedures at private facilities, unless the life of the mother is at risk due to the Hyde Amendment.
Another challenge is that women in the military can’t easily — or discreetly — leave their stations to travel to a different state to obtain the procedure.
But those rules are all up to the individual services. Defense Secretary LLOYD AUSTIN’s office is taking the lead on formulating any new policies for how female servicemembers stationed in states that have outlawed abortion can or can’t transfer elsewhere or receive the procedure, two defense officials told POLITICO.
No one wants a repeat of the last two years of service-by-service Covid policies that were confusing and in constant flux, according to one of the officials.
In an afternoon statement, Austin said that “nothing is more important to me or to this Department than the health and well-being of our Service members, the civilian workforce and DOD families. I am committed to taking care of our people and ensuring the readiness and resilience of our Force. The Department is examining this decision closely and evaluating our policies to ensure we continue to provide seamless access to reproductive health care as permitted by federal law.”
Democratic lawmakers, meanwhile, are working to shore up protections for these troops, but their effort faces stiff resistance from colleagues across the aisle.
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