Dem Women’s Caucus Leadership Announces Opposition to House Republicans’ NDAA, Which Includes Attack on Abortion Access

Washington D.C. – Today, Democratic Women’s Caucus (DWC) Chair Lois Frankel, Vice Chairs Nikema Williams and Teresa Leger Fernández, and Chief Whip Lucy McBath announced their formal opposition to extreme House Republicans’ National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which includes a cruel, harmful amendment to roll back a Department of Defense (DoD) policy helping servicewomen travel to get the abortion care they need.

In June, DWC leaders sent a letter to House Armed Services Committee (HASC) leadership making clear they strongly oppose any efforts to attack reproductive health care in the NDAA—and the inclusion of any such provision could jeopardize final passage of the bill.

“The NDAA is a historically bipartisan bill dedicated to strengthening our national security and protecting our servicemembers, but today, extreme House Republicans have turned it into yet another way to attack reproductive rights—and in this case, risking the health and lives of over 230,000 women in uniform. These servicewomen leave their homes, their families and friends, and are willing to risk their lives to serve our nation—and yet House Republicans are adamant on ripping away their reproductive freedom, and undoing a policy that would ensure they can travel to get abortion care. It’s absolutely shameful,” said DWC Chair Lois Frankel.

“The Democratic Women’s Caucus is dedicated to making sure women across the country have a voice in the halls of power—and women don’t want to see the NDAA used as another mechanism for taking away their ability to make their own health care choices. We oppose the Republican version of this bill, which is yet another attempt to enact a national abortion ban,” continued Chair Frankel.

Click here to find a map of abortion restrictions and current military bases, making clear how many women could be impacted by this amendment.

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