Following a memo, the Trump administration prohibited the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) from providing abortion services to veterans and their dependents. Written by Deputy Assistant Attorney General Joshua Craddock of the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC), the memo was issued Dec. 18, directly rejecting a previous opinion.
A Biden-era OLC opinion had previously allowed the VA to provide limited abortion services. This memo revoked that permission.
“The Department of Veterans Affairs may not provide abortion services under any provision of chapter 17 of title 38 of the U.S. Code,” the memo stated.
The opinion does reaffirm that the VA has always allowed “lifesaving medical intervention,” arguing that instances of these interventions, like ectopic pregnancies or miscarriages, are not considered “abortions” under typical legal and medical definitions. However, in cases of rape or incest that result in pregnancy, this opinion rejects the previous rule that allowed for abortions.
