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Veterans Break Through Barrier To Vets Starting Families

NEW YORK, NY (January 19, 2017) – Today, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, the nation’s leading voice for the Post-9/11 generation of veterans, celebrated the implementation of a new interim rule that will allow the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide fertility counseling and treatment options, including in-vitro fertilization (IVF), to veterans with combat related trauma to the reproductive organs. This rule comes after IAVA’s successful fight as a part of a coalition that won passage of this new benefit into law in the last Congress.

“Thousands of veterans and their families now have new hope with an additional path to start or expand their families, which is often critical to many veterans’ transition back to civilian life after duty,” said Paul Rieckhoff, Founder and CEO of IAVA. “With these new treatment options, veterans are no longer burdened with paying out of pocket to welcome a new member to their family, which only adds to the list of burdens surrounding the choice to do so.”

“We thank the Obama Administration for acting quickly to to ensure those who sacrifice for our country don’t also have to sacrifice their dream of a family,” continued Rieckhoff. “We will continue to work with Congress to ensure this benefit is made permanent beyond 2018 and look to the Trump Administration to be our partners in keeping this benefit in place.”

IAVA partnered with the Wounded Warrior Project, Paralyzed Veterans of America, The Bob Woodruff Foundation, American Society for Reproductive Medicine, RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association and other leading Veterans Service organizations and infertility advocacy groups to ask Congress to ensure that VA can provide the same options as DoD for veterans needing fertility assistance. The interim rule was published today and now will be implemented nationwide.

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