This fall Congress will begin debate on an important bill that would help rectify a glaring inequality in our military. Under current law, U.S. servicewomen who become pregnant as a result of rape or incest are not covered for any abortion care, even though a federal employee or a Medicaid enrollee in the same situation would be. As a result, women in the military who have been raped are forced to pay for abortion care out of their own pocket and find their own treatment facility, even if they are stationed overseas.
This policy blatantly discriminates against our own servicewomen at a time when they already face much greater risks of sexual assault than the civilians they bravely protect. Last year alone there were over 3,100 reported instances of sexual assault in the military, a figure made all the more harrowing by the substantial under-reporting of such incidents. In fact, estimates by the Department of Defense put the total number of assaults above 19,000.
The Military Access to Reproductive Care and Health for Military Women Act (MARCH for Military Women Act, H.R.2085 and S.1214) would change this discriminatory policy and cover abortion care for servicewomen and dependents in instances of rape or incest. It would also allow privately funded abortions to take place at military treatment facilities, ensuring safe access to quality health care, which sadly is not always the case under the current policy.
The legislation was recently introduced in the House and Senate, and our Congressional Delegation needs to hear from you if we’re going to ensure equality for US servicewomen. This is far too important an issue to fall through the cracks, which is why we need your help:
If you are a current or former member of the military, or if you are a health care provider who has served military personnel and would like to sign a letter telling Congress to end this double standard, CONTACT US. Not a servicemember or health care provider but know someone who is? Forward this blog post to them. To lend your voice to this issue in other ways, SEND A MESSAGE to your Senators telling them that our servicewomen deserve the same access to health care as those they risk their lives protecting.
