Dear Chairman Stump and Ranking Member Skelton:
As Members of Congress who oppose the ban on privately-funded abortions for U.S. servicewomen at military hospitals overseas, we urge you recede to the Senate position and repeal this harmful and unjust ban in the FY 2003 National Defense Authorization Act. Despite the fact that women in the United States have the constitutional right to access safe and legal abortions, a woman serving in the United States military, or who is the spouse or female dependant of a serviceman, cannot obtain an abortion in a U.S. military medical facility, even if she pays for this medical procedure with personal funds.
At a time when many of our nation’s women and men are courageously serving around the world to protect the United States, we are reminded of the fundamental rights and freedoms for which our nation stands. As U.S. citizens, women in our armed forces should have the same access to healthcare as they would were they based on U.S. soil. It is imperative that our servicewomen are afforded the same rights they are protecting for the American people.
Furthermore, the ban on privately-funded abortion services at U.S. military hospitals overseas needlessly jeopardizes the health and lives of our troops. Leaving servicewomen few other options but to turn to non-U.S. health facilities exposes them to potentially inadequate, unsafe and sub-standard medical care, often in countries where U.S. animosity runs high. Forcing servicewomen to return to the U.S. to receive medical care imposes significant burdens on our troops, particularly in hostile areas where safe travel cannot be ensured.
Last May, the language repealing the ban was narrowly defeated in the house by a 215-202 margin. However, the Senate passed a similar amendment by a 52-40 vote. As Members of Congress, we must act now to protect the rights, health, and well being of our servicewomen bravely serving and defending our country.
I hope you will take the time to read the enclosed letter from Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Claudia Kennedy, the highest-ranking woman to ever serve in the U.S. military. Her first-hand account of women adversely impacted by this policy sheds light on the urgency of the situation.
Thank you for your consideration of this very important issue.
Sincerely,
Members of the U.S. House of Representatives
Loretta Sanchez
Jane Harman
Martin Frost
Susan Davis
Corrine Brown
Neil Abercrombie
Elijah Cummings
Tammy Baldwin
Lynn Woolsey
Anthony Wiener
Betty McCollum
Bernard Sanders
Martin Olav Sabo
Edolphus Towns
Albert Russell Wynn
James McGovern
Louise McIntosh Slaughter
Michael Honda
Joseph Hoeffel
Fortney Pete Stark
Maurice Hinchey
Janice Schakowsky
Shelley Berkley
Mark Udall
Robert Andrews
Barbara Lee
Benjamin Cardin
Thomas Barrett
Maxine Waters
Christopher Shays
Lloyd Doggett
Eliot Engel
Nancy Pelosi
Robert Ehrlich Jr.
Calvin Dooley
Gary Ackerman
Diane DeGette
