HYDE-SMITH LEADS PRO-LIFE LAWMAKERS IN ENDORSING END OF BIDEN VA ABORTION RULE

HYDE-SMITH LEADS PRO-LIFE LAWMAKERS IN ENDORSING END OF BIDEN VA ABORTION RULE

71 Senators, Members of Congress Weigh in on Trump Effort to Restore Pro-Life Policies, End Abortion Services at VA Facilities

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), chair of the Senate Pro-Life Caucus, today released a letter she led that was signed by 71 Senators and Members of Congress who support the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs proposed rule to rescind a Biden-era rule promoting abortion services at VA facilities.

The bicameral letter was submitted as an official comment on the proposed rule, Reproductive Health Services (90 FR 36415), as it undergoes the review process. In the letter, lawmakers argue that the Biden VA abortion rule is "an unconstitutional overreach that was not authorized by clear statutory authority."

"There is strong, bicameral support for President Trump's and VA Secretary Collins' proposed rule to end the Biden administration's illegal actions to turn the VA into a network of abortion providers, violating federal and state law," Hyde-Smith said. "I am proud of the support there is in Congress to reassert federal policy toward protecting life."

In all, the letter was signed by 13 Senators and 58 House members.

"Rescinding the Biden Administration's rule is also a prime example of the appropriate deregulation that the American people expect from the Trump Administration. The Biden rule was an unconstitutional overreach that was not authorized by clear statutory authority," the lawmakers wrote. "Congress passed the Veterans Healthcare Act of 1992, which specifically prohibits VA from providing abortion services unless a medical emergency presents a threat to the life of the mother. This governing law is reinforced by the longstanding traditional Hyde Amendment protections of federal tax dollars from supporting the abortion industry, a policy brought to the forefront by President Trump during the first week of his second term in office."

"As Senators and Members of Congress who value the inherent dignity of every human life, at every stage of life, we are grateful to see President Trump's VA return to genuine and lawful health care practices. We support Secretary Collins in his effort to reinstate the full exclusion of abortion services from the VA's medical package and CHAMPVA benefits. This effort reaffirms the profound respect we hold for America's veterans-ensuring genuine and high-quality health care is the top priority," the lawmakers concluded.

Included among the points made by lawmakers in their comment submitted to the Federal Register:

• The Biden rule "clearly circumvented federal law by issuing an interim final rule claiming that abortion access was necessary to prevent death, "despite no state laws prohibiting an abortion to save the life of the mother.
• The Biden rule conflated health care with abortion services, "a practice that poses significant medical risks to pregnant women and directly intends to end the life of the second patient, the unborn child."
• The Biden rule trained VA health care providers in a "manipulative and dehumanizing approach" that burdened them with unlawful requirements "to promote abortion to the patients, potentially violating their conscience in the process."

In addition to Hyde-Smith, other Senate signatories included U.S. Senators James Lankford (R-Okla.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), Todd Young (R-Ind.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), and Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.).

U.S. Representative Michael Guest (R-Miss.) is among the members of the House of Representatives who signed the letter.

Read the lawmakers' letter here.

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