WASHINGTON – Congressman Michael Cloud (R-TX) and Senator James Lankford (R-OK) were joined by 12 Republican Senators and 25 members of the House of Representatives to file a public comment letter expressing strong opposition to the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) interim final rule (IFR) that illegally allows abortions to be offered by the VA. The Members cite that the rule directly violates the VA’s explicit statutory prohibition on abortion which has governed the VA for 30 years. The letter calls on Secretary of VA Denis McDonough to promptly rescind the rule.

The Members wrote in their letter, “The VA does not have the power to override an Act of Congress to impose its preferred policy of taxpayer-funded abortion on demand until birth. Tragically, the IFR is the latest in a long string of actions the Biden Administration has taken to promote the killing of unborn children through abortion in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. We demand that you immediately rescind the IFR and revert the VA’s policies to the long-standing prior regulation excluding abortion and abortion counseling from the VA’s medical benefits package as well as the CHAMPVA program, in conformity with the law and congressional intent.”

“The Biden administration is again attempting to twist the law to its will by illegally authorizing the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide abortion services,” Congressman Cloud said. “The VA should remain committed to providing critical care to support the lives of our veterans, not be another last ditch attempt by the Biden administration to force taxpayers to pay for other people’s abortions.”

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