Common Defense Joined The House and Senate Veterans’ Committees for Press Conference On VA’s Proposed Abortion Care Ban and Counseling Restrictions.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 3, 2025
Photos from the event can be found here
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Common Defense, a national membership organization of veterans and military families, joined House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Ranking Member Mark Takano (CA‑39) and Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Ranking Member Richard Blumenthal (D‑CT) at a press conference held in coordination with the Democratic Women’s Caucus and the Reproductive Freedom Caucus. The event addressed the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) proposed rule that would reinstate a near‑total abortion ban and bar VA clinicians from providing comprehensive pregnancy counseling, including information about abortion services.
Common Defense Political Director and Army veteran Naveed Shah was among the speakers and said the following:
“Over the past month, Common Defense’s membership has mobilized in response. More than 200 veteran leaders joined three training webinars we organized on the danger of this rule and how to submit public comments. That momentum has carried forward, with more than 5,600 veterans and allies across the country signing our petition opposing this rule. That is thousands of voices demanding that the Trump Administration do the right thing.
“Let’s be clear about the stakes. One in three female veterans reports experiencing sexual assault during their service, and one in three face intimate partner violence, rates far higher than among civilian women. For these survivors, access to comprehensive reproductive care is not just a medical necessity, it’s a matter of dignity and autonomy. Denying them this care is a betrayal of the promises we make to those who defend our freedoms.
“This rule doesn’t just take away care, it forces veterans to leave the VA system that they rely on in their most vulnerable moments. It tells survivors of military sexual trauma that their government will abandon them when they need help most. That is unacceptable.
“President Biden’s 2022 policy allowed the VA to provide abortions in limited circumstances. This ban takes away that choice from the 400,000 women veterans living in states with abortion bans or severe restrictions. Biden’s modest but vital policy offered a lifeline to veterans in states where reproductive care has been gutted post-Roe v. Wade. The Trump administration’s proposal to reverse this, claiming it’s “legally questionable” or a matter of “patient safety,” ignores the reality that veterans rely on the VA as their primary, sometimes only, healthcare provider.
“So let’s be clear, this rule is not about safety, it’s about control. It dismisses the expertise of doctors and healthcare providers and the lived experiences of veterans like Ash Wallis, who, after surviving a life-threatening pregnancy complication, was denied an IUD by the VA and forced to pay out of pocket to protect her health. Stories like hers remind us that this policy will disproportionately harm the most vulnerable, those in states with abortion bans, those without means to seek care elsewhere, and those already bearing the scars of trauma.
“We cannot ignore the broader context. The VA is already grappling with severe staff shortages, including about 2,000 nurses, 800 doctors, and hundreds of other critical healthcare workers who have already been laid off or left under this administration. These cuts exacerbate the crisis, leaving veterans with fewer options and longer waits for care. Now, adding a blanket abortion ban risks turning VA hospitals into places where veterans’ needs are sidelined in favor of ideological agendas.
“Today, I call on the Trump administration to withdraw this cruel and dangerous proposal. I urge Congress to support legislation, like that proposed by Rep. Brownley, to codify veterans’ rights to reproductive care and counseling through the VA. And I call on every American to stand with our veterans, men, women, trans, and non-binary, who deserve healthcare that respects their service and their choices.
"There is still time to act. The deadline to submit public comments is midnight tonight. Every veteran, every family member, every American who cares about veterans’ well-being should make their voice heard. Public comments matter — they create a record, they force accountability, and they can stop harmful policies before they take effect. Let’s ensure the VA remains a place where veterans receive the care they’ve earned, not a testing ground for restrictive policies that could spread nationwide.
“Women veterans are the fastest-growing part of our community, but the responsibility to speak out cannot fall on them alone. Every veteran has a responsibility to defend access to needed care. Standing silent while our sisters in arms lose their rights is not an option. We served together; now we stand together.
“I urge the Department of Veterans Affairs to withdraw this cruel proposal and uphold the promise of comprehensive care for all who served. Veterans fought for this country. We should not have to fight our own government for the health care we have earned.”
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Common Defense Civic Engagement is a grassroots, veteran-led organization (501c4) that was founded in 2016. We empower veterans to stand up for our communities against the rising tide of racism, hate, and violence, to organize against the entrenched powers that have rigged our economy, and to champion an equitable and representative democracy, where “liberty and justice” truly is for all. For too long, politicians from both political parties have attempted to use veterans as unwilling political props, and Common Defense serves as a home for veterans to organize and speak for themselves and support the candidates who truly share our values.