The Department of Veterans Affairs is now recommending abortion as the safest option for pregnant veterans, according to exclusive training videos obtained by The Post Millennial.
In leaked videos used to train healthcare providers that work with the agency, pregnancy is described as a condition that is “most certainly not benign” and harmful for “pregnancy capable persons.” The training videos instruct personnel to steer away from the term “mother” and to use gender-neutral language.
VA personnel are also instructed to avoid the words “baby” and “unborn child,” and told to instead use “fetus” and “embryo.” They also are told to use “uterus” instead of “womb” and “intact dilation and evacuation” instead of “partial birth abortion.” Additionally, healthcare personnel are told to never say “congratulations” to an expectant mother, but to instead merely inform them that they are pregnant when sharing the results.
Data from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists cited by the VA claims that abortion is ten times safer than carrying a pregnancy to term while noting that one-fourth of “pregnancy capable” persons has an abortion and that nearly one-fifth of pregnancies in the United States end in abortion.
The VA training videos also extensively quote research conducted by Diane Green Foster, a pro-abortion professor based in San Francisco, whose diversity and inclusion page mentions white supremacy and racism, along with statements about police violence.
The revelation of the training comes after a year of abortions approved by the VA despite the overturning of Roe v. Wade last year. Even after the Supreme Court opinion, the agency implemented a rule that allows veterans to receive abortion counseling and procedures in certain situations, such as rape, incest, and the health of the mother.
However, the policy arguably contradicts the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits most federal funding of abortions. Personnel are not required to investigate claims of rape or incest and instead are told to advise the pregnant women on next steps in seeking an abortion.
“Pregnant veterans and VA beneficiaries deserve to have access to world-class reproductive care when they need it most,” VA Secretary Denis McDonough, an appointee of President Joe Biden, said in a statement last year. “That’s what our nation owes them, and that’s what we at VA will deliver.”
The VA has been under threat of subpoena by the House Veterans Affairs Committee for failing to provide quarterly reports of abortion procedures. The VA has until the end of the month to provide the requested information.
“Congress has historically prohibited taxpayer funded abortions,” two Republican leaders on the House Committee on Veterans Affairs wrote in a letter last week. “This administration has used all levers available to undermine that definitive policy pronouncement.”
The VA has frequently cited health of the mother as a reason for abortions, according to the letter, but has not specified the underlying health issues or if there was imminent risk of death.
“It is extremely disconcerting that a veteran may qualify for an abortion due to mental health concerns, and yet that veteran is not required to undergo any mental health evaluation or treatment prior to, or in the aftermath of, an abortion,” the letter added. “We cannot understand how not providing necessary help and support is the right choice for the veteran patient.”
