WASHINGTON — Planned Parenthood Federation of America President Cecile Richards released the following statement applauding the bipartisan Congressional approval of an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, granting military women insurance coverage for abortion when a pregnancy results from rape or incest. This amendment was authored by Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH).

“The inclusion of the Shaheen amendment in the final National Defense Authorization Act is an important step toward ensuring military women have access to the health care coverage they deserve. It is only fair that any woman serving our nation at home or abroad should have access to the same health care services.

“As the nation’s leading women’s health care provider and advocate, Planned Parenthood knows it’s critical that a woman in the armed forces has access to a comprehensive range of reproductive health care services to consider, if and when she needs to.

“We applaud Senator Jeanne Shaheen for her tireless leadership in fighting for the military women who risk their lives fighting for our nation and those in both Houses of Congress who voted to protect a woman’s ability to make her own personal medical decisions without interference from politicians.”

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Contacts

Planned Parenthood Federation of America media office, 212-261-4433

Published: 12.21.12

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Planned Parenthood Applauds Final Passage of Shaheen Amendment: “Shaheen amendment is an important step toward ensuring military women have access to the health care coverage they deserve”