Baldwin, Colleagues Fight to Overturn Trump Admin Abortion Ban at the VA

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) joined more than 200 Senate and House Democrats in filing an amicus brief to Minority Veterans of America v. Secretary of Veterans Affairs , a lawsuit challenging the Trump Administration’s abortion ban at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The ban restricts veterans’ right to reproductive health care across the country, including in Wisconsin, even in cases of rape, incest, or when their health is endangered. Wisconsin is home to over 25,000 female veterans. The lawsuit, pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, seeks to overturn VA’s ban on abortion care and counseling. In the brief, the lawmakers argue the Trump Administration’s 2025 policy banning abortion counseling and abortion care in almost all cases rests on a flawed legal premise. “VA’s Final Rule rests on a faulty interpretation of federal law that has significant negative consequences for our nation’s veterans. The issues presented in this case potentially reach roughly 462,000 women veterans of reproductive age who are enrolled in VA health care, along with an estimated 112,000 women of reproductive age enrolled in the Civilian Health and Medical Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs (CHAMPVA),” wrote Baldwin and the lawmakers. “For them, the Final Rule means a VA physician is prohibited from discussing the full range of a patient’s options during a pregnancy, prohibited from providing the full range of health care available to pregnant women, and is prohibited from intervening when a pregnancy threatens the patient’s health or is the result of rape or incest,” Baldwin and the lawmakers continued. The lawmakers argue in the brief that VA’s erroneous interpretation of federal law means these women now cannot receive abortion care or counseling even in the most harrowing circumstances. They also argue the Veterans’ Health Care Eligibility Reform Act of 1996 allows VA to provide any medical services the Secretary “determines to be needed” and that the Veterans Health Care Act of 1992 , which VA used to justify its abortion ban, does not restrict the Secretary’s authority to add abortion care to its medical benefits package. In September 2022, VA began to offer abortion counseling to all pregnant veterans and CHAMPVA beneficiaries, and abortion care in cases of rape, incest, or life or health endangerment of the veteran or CHAMPVA beneficiary. This was in response to the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling, which created urgent risks to the lives and health of pregnant veterans and CHAMPVA beneficiaries in states that banned or otherwise severely restricted access to abortion. VA’s dangerous abortion ban means that veterans nationwide now face those same risks. More than 462,000 veterans of reproductive age are enrolled in VA health care, and more than 112,000 women of reproductive age are enrolled in CHAMPVA. More than half of these women live in states that have enacted abortion bans or restrictions. Senator Baldwin has long led the charge to restore abortion access nationwide, including leading the entire Senate Democratic caucus in introducing the Women’s Health Protection Act , legislation to guarantee access to abortion everywhere across the country and restore the right to comprehensive reproductive health care for millions of Americans. In the Senate, the amicus brief was signed by all 47 Democratic U.S. Senators. In the House, the brief was signed by 165 Democratic U.S. Representatives. Full text of the amicus brief can be found here . ###