News & Blog
Senators Murray, Duckworth, Reps. Larsen, Jacobs Reintroduce Legislation to Help Veterans Start Their Families, Provide Major Expansion to Covered Fertility Care Services at DoD and VA
The Veteran Families Health Services Act would expand DoD and VA health care to include comprehensive family-building assistance for servicemembers and veterans—allowing servicemembers to freeze their eggs prior to deployment, providing adoption assistance, and expanding access to IVF in a major way, among other things
Senator Murray: “When injuries incurred in the line of duty leave American servicemembers and veterans without the ability to conceive naturally, it’s obvious that we should be doing everything we can to provide the support and the options they need to build their families—whether that’s IVF, adoption assistance, or other fertility treatments.”
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member and former Chair of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and Representatives Rick Larsen (D-WA-02) and Sara Jacobs (D-CA-51) reintroduced the Veteran Families Health Services Act of 2023, comprehensive legislation that would expand the fertility treatments and family-building services that are covered under servicemembers’ and veterans’ health care to include—among other things—the option for individuals to cryopreserve their gametes (freeze their eggs or sperm) ahead of deployment to a combat zone and in vitro fertilization (IVF) for servicemembers and veterans who are unable to conceive without assistance.
