The Department of Veterans Affairs announced Monday: Expanding the scope of in vitro fertilization Single, unmarried veterans and same-sex couples are eligible, according to one department. press release.
Previously, only married veterans were able to produce their own sperm. [and] The Department of Veterans Affairs announced this week that it would expand infertility treatment to veterans “using donated sperm or eggs.”
“The Department of Veterans Affairs has announced that it will soon be able to provide in vitro fertilization (IVF) to eligible unmarried veterans and eligible same-sex married veterans. This is an important step to help veterans who are unable to produce their own sperm or eggs due to military service-related injuries or health conditions. ,” reads a press release from the VA.
“Under current law, all veterans who receive IVF from the VA must be unable to have children without undergoing infertility treatment due to health conditions stemming from their military service. Prior to today’s expansion of care, , the VA was authorized to provide IVF services only to veterans who were legally married and who produced their own gametes (both eggs and sperm) within their relationship. “You can,” the press release continued. “Under this expansion of care, the Veterans Administration will offer in vitro fertilization benefits to eligible veterans, regardless of marital status, and for the first time, allow the use of donor eggs, sperm, and embryos.”
The Veterans Administration expects to be able to expand IVF coverage “nationwide in the coming weeks.”
The Pentagon announced plans to expand coverage in a December court filing following a lawsuit by Yale Law School and the New York City chapter of the National Organization for Women. military era report.
according to Sonia OssorioThe executive director of NOW-NYC said the lawsuit urges the Department of Defense and the VA to “remove all discriminatory barriers to make this reproductive health care available to all service members and veterans who need it.” I asked for it.
“This is an important step forward for health services,” said Kimberly Rahm, product director in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Services Policy and Oversight. said“We continue [to] Identify ways to go as far as possible to support equitable access to reproductive health care for military members. ”
“We are doing everything we can to help military members make reproductive health decisions that align with their family planning goals,” she said.
Rahm said expanding IVF coverage is “just one example of how we support” Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III’s “considerations for service members and families.” . motionThe goal is to “facilitate military transition, support the careers of military spouses, strengthen support for military families, and ensure economic stability.”
Veterans Affairs Secretary Dennis McDonough said expanding coverage is a top priority for the department.
“Raising a family is a wonderful thing, and I’m proud that the Veterans Administration will soon help give more veterans that opportunity,” McDonough said.
“We are working urgently to make IVF available to eligible unmarried veterans, same-sex married veterans, and veterans in need of a donor in every region of the country as quickly as possible. ”
Military and veterans seeking IVF treatment will only be covered if their infertility issues are due to military service, the press release explains.
Donovan Bendana, a Yale Law School student who heads NOW-NYC, said the lawsuit, which aims to expand insurance coverage to everyone regardless of the cause of their infertility problems, has not been fully addressed. Regardless, he called the expanded application a “significant advance.”
“Onerous requirements to link infertility to specific service-related injuries deprive many service members of the opportunity to start a family. “This is particularly arbitrary given the decades of indifference to research,” Bendana said.
NOW-NYC intends to continue pursuing the lawsuit.
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