Trump administration bans US veterans agency from providing abortions

The Department of Veterans Affairs can no longer provide abortions to veterans, including in cases of rape or incest, following a Department of Justice memo that found last week that the practice was not legally sound.

The ban follows months of efforts by the Trump administration to roll back a Biden-era policy that, for the first time, permitted the VA to counsel veterans and their families about abortion, as well as offer the procedure in cases of rape or incest, or when a veteran’s pregnancy imperiled their health. In August, the administration filed paperwork to officially roll back the policy, which had helped the VA’s network of 1,300-plus healthcare facilities – which treat nearly 10 million veterans each year – expand access to abortion, especially in the wake of the US supreme court’s 2022 overturning of Roe v Wade.

That paperwork is still working its way through the lengthy rule-making process, a VA spokesperson confirmed.

“DOJ’s opinion states that VA is not legally authorized to provide abortions, and VA is complying with it immediately,” Peter Kasperowicz, VA press secretary, said in an emailed statement. “DOJ’s opinion is consistent with VA’s proposed rule.”

Screenshots obtained by an advocacy group of what appears to be an internal VA memo, circulated among the heads of the VA’s regional care networks on 22 December, indicate that the changes “do not prohibit providing care to pregnant women in life-threatening circumstances”, including in cases of miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy or when “the veteran’s clinician determines … the care necessary to save a veteran’s life”.

A VA spokesperson did not immediately respond to follow-up questions about the screenshot or veterans’ ability to obtain abortions in medical emergencies.

“Denying veterans essential health care and abortion access – even in cases of rape or serious health risk – after they have sacrificed so much for our country is callous and inhumane,” Skye Perryman, president and CEO of the legal non-profit Democracy Forward, said in a statement. Democracy Forward obtained and published the screenshot of the memo.

More than a dozen states have banned virtually all abortions since the supreme court overturned Roe. As of 2024, more than half of female veterans live in states that ban abortion or are likely to, according to the National Partnership for Women & Families.

The news of the VA’s abortion ban was first reported by MS Now.