Congress bans elective abortions at overseas military hospitals

Published: 2005-05-31

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- A pro-life spokeswoman for the U.S. bishops praised a May 25 House vote against a measure that would have allowed elective abortions to be performed in military hospitals overseas. The measure, an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, was opposed 233-194. "Our military hospitals have a proud and honorable tradition of saving lives in the most threatening regions and circumstances. They should not be forced into the dishonorable business of abortion," said Cathy Cleaver Ruse, director of planning and information for the bishops' Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities. In 1988, the Reagan administration established a policy that prohibited elective abortions in military hospitals. The policy was overturned by President Bill Clinton in 1993, but the Congress overturned the Clinton policy in 1996. At the time, a military survey of Army, Navy and Air Force doctors stationed in Europe said medical personnel in the armed services were unwilling to perform abortions.

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