Sailors and Marines may receive Congressional protection from being denied leave for abortions

While the Army and the Air Force have policies that require commanders to authorize leave in order to obtain access to safe, legal abortions, the Navy and Marine Corps do not. Sailors and Marines have a particularly hard time leaving the state to terminate unwanted pregnancies.

The impact of having no such protection is felt perhaps the hardest in Texas, where there is an absolute ban on abortions, and service members have to cross the states lines, which could involve crossing the vast state, making it extremely challenging for Sailors and Marines.

However, a new provision in the Defense Department’s House Appropriation Bill for the 2022 Fiscal Year could remove all barriers preventing Sailors and Marines from crossing state lines in order to abort a pregnancy.

Days before the Supreme Court officially overturned Roe v Wade, the The House Appropriations Committee pre-emptively passed its mark of the bill. Since then, multiple states have pulled the trigger on bans or have conveyed that they will.

Representative Betty McCollum from Minnesota said, “​​Why should not every single woman who’s raised up their hand and taken an oath be guaranteed the same health care right?”

Rosa DeLaura, Representative from Connecticut, said that to not include said provision would make troops “hostages to their geography.”

There are roughly 160,700 Sailors stationed between Virginia and California, both states having limits on when abortions can be preformed.

Last week, Gilbert Cisneros, the Under Secretary of Defense released a memorandum stating that the Supreme Court ruling would not abolish any current protections for service members who may need an abortion. It stated, “Existing Department policy authorizes active duty Service members to travel as necessary to receive abortion care — either as Government-funded, official travel for a covered abortion, or at the Service member’s own expense on regular leave for all other cases,” according to the memo.

It continued, “This decision will have significant implications for our Service members, dependents, other beneficiaries of DoD health care services, and civilian employees, as well as the readiness of the Force. As Secretary Austin has made clear, nothing is more important that the health and well-being of our Service members, the civilian workforce, and DoD families, and we are committed to taking care of all of our people and ensuring that the entire Force remains ready and resilient.”