Re: Support The Murray/Snowe Amendment To S. 2549, FY 2001 Defense Authorization Bill  

Dear Senator:  

We urge you to support an important bipartisan amendment to the FY 2001 Defense Authorization Bill to be introduced on the Senate floor by Senators Patty Murray and Olympia Snowe. This amendment would ensure equal access to comprehensive reproductive health care for all U.S. servicewomen and military dependents, regardless of where they are stationed.  

Current law prohibits women from obtaining abortion services at U.S. military hospitals, even if paid for with their own private funds. For women and dependents stationed overseas, this restriction poses grave health risks because local health facilities are often inadequate or entirely unavailable, and the barriers and delays associated with travel to a safe facility can substantially increase the risks of an abortion procedure.  

This ban on privately funded abortions also discriminates against women and their families who have volunteered to serve their country and have been assigned overseas. It restricts their constitutional right to choose simply because of their military service and where they are stationed. The Department of Defense opposes this harmful restriction. In a letter to Congress dated May 7, 1999, DOD emphasized that "it is unfair for female service members, particularly those assigned to overseas locations, to be denied their constitutional right to the full range of reproductive health care."  

The Murray/Snowe Amendment repeals this dangerous and discriminatory ban. The ACLU strongly urges you to support this effort to ensure crucial access to reproductive health care for our military women.  

Sincerely,  

Laura W. Murphy
Director  

Kathryn Engustian
Legislative Counsel