An advocacy group has filed suit against the Trump administration over its decision to reinstate a near-ban on abortions for veterans and their family members who depend on the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for healthcare.
The federal lawsuit filed Thursday says the rule finalized by the VA on Dec. 31 takes away limited abortion access that was “crucial for the health, autonomy, and equality of veterans and their family members.”
Attorneys for the group Minority Veterans of America want the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to throw out the rule. They say the VA adopted the change without citing medical evidence or other justifications, violating the Administrative Procedures Act that governs federal rulemaking.
The VA did not include abortion in its coverage until 2022. President Joe Biden’s administration added it months after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and states' abortion bans began taking effect.
Abortion access the VA provided under Biden was limited, applying only in cases when a pregnant woman’s life or health was at risk, or in cases of rape or incest.
The Biden change allowed the VA to provide abortion even in states where it was banned. And it brought the VA’s coverage into line with other federal healthcare plans — including Medicaid and TriCare coverage for active military members and their families — that allowed limited abortion access.
The VA announced its proposal to undo those changes last August, a few months after President Donald Trump returned to the White House.
The VA had said it will still provide abortions in cases where a pregnant woman's life is threatened. That's something state laws allow, even in places where bans are in place.
However, the VA no longer allows exceptions for abortions in cases of rape, incest or to protect a pregnant woman's health. Abortion counseling is also no longer allowed.
A VA spokesperson declined to comment, noting the agency typically doesn't comment on pending litigation.
Minority Veterans of America says it represents more than 3,600 members across the U.S.
“Our community includes veterans with complex medical histories, those who have experienced pregnancy complications, and survivors of sexual violence and trauma, all of whom need access to abortion care and counseling to protect their health," Lindsay Church, the group's executive director, said in a statement.
In publishing its final rule in December, the VA said it was restoring the agency's longstanding position that abortions were not “needed” under federal law and that “this determination did not prohibit providing life-saving care to pregnant veterans.”
The lawsuit says one of Minority Veteran of America's members is a military veteran who just learned she was pregnant in early May. She suffers from chronic pain that has been exacerbated by the pregnancy, placing her health “at substantial risk,” says the lawsuit, which withheld the woman's name to protect her privacy.
The lawsuit says the VA won't allow the unnamed veteran to receive an abortion “even if her health is at risk, unless a provider determines an abortion is necessary to save her life.”
Bynum reported from Savannah, Georgia.
FILE - Anti-abortion activists rally outside of the U.S. Supreme Court during the March for Life in Washington, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Pep Guardiola confirmed Friday what Manchester City fans had been fearing. The club’s most successful manager is leaving, bringing to a close a trophy-laden, 10-year spell in which he established City as one of major forces in Europe and changed the face of English soccer.
Guardiola, who had a further year left on his City contract, will take charge of his final game against Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday.
“Don’t ask me the reasons I’m leaving. There is no reason, but deep inside, I know it’s my time,” Guardiola said. “Nothing is eternal, if it was, I would be here. Eternal will be the feeling, the people, the memories, the love I have for my Manchester City.”
City said Guardiola would take up a role as global ambassador.
Enzo Maresca — the former Chelsea manager who was previously assistant to Guardiola at City — is the favorite to take on the daunting task of filling Guardiola’s shoes after a decade of unprecedented dominance.
Since joining City in the summer of 2016, Guardiola led the Abu Dhabi-backed team to six Premier League titles and the Champions League for the first time in 2023.
He won 17 major trophies in all, including a domestic double this season of the English League Cup and the FA Cup. He has won 35 major titles across his coaching career including his time at Barcelona and Bayern Munich.
City was far his longest job in management, having never previously stayed more than four years in a role.
He set new benchmarks, with City becoming the first team to win four-straight English league titles and the first to amass 100 points in a single season in 2018. The following year City became the first team to win the domestic treble of the league, FA Cup and League Cup in the same season.
But his biggest achievement was leading City to the ultimate treble in 2023, winning the league, Champions League and FA Cup — matching Manchester United’s feat from more than 20 years earlier in 1999.
He also brought to England a style of soccer — a possession-based approach that started with playing the ball out from the goalkeeper or defense — that ended up being mimicked across the country, from kids’ teams at grassroots level to rival teams in the Premier League.
“The unique approach that he brings to his coaching has allowed him to constantly challenge the accepted truths of our game. It is the reason that in the last 10 years he has not only made Manchester City better — he has also made football better,” City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said. He added that it was the “right answer” for Guardiola to walk away now.
While he goes out on another trophy-winning campaign, this was the first time in his career that he has gone two seasons without being crowned league champion.
City was also eliminated from the Champions League before the quarterfinal stage in each of the last two years.
City said Guardiola's new role would see him give technical advice to clubs in its ownership group.
“Pep’s legacy is extraordinary and its true impact will be better assessed by Manchester City historians of the future,” said chief executive Ferran Sorriano. “If there is something more difficult than winning, it is winning again. It requires incredible persistence, resilience and the humility to start again every year, with the same energy, again and again. This is what Pep did.”
While Guardiola will go down as one of the greatest managers in Premier League history — rivaling Alex Ferguson — he repeatedly had to defend City against allegations of financial breaches, with more than 100 charges still hanging over the club.
City was accused of providing misleading information about its finances over a nine-year period from 2009-18 — a span in which it won three titles and signed some of the world’s best players, like Yaya Toure, Sergio Aguero and Kevin de Bruyne. One of those titles was won under Guardiola.
City has always denied wrongdoing. Guardiola said he “fully convinced” the club was innocent.
“We worked. We suffered. We fought. And we did things our own way. Our way,” said Guardiola in his farewell message to fans.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Manchester City's head coach Pep Guardiola leaves the field at the end of the English Premier League soccer match between AFC Bournemouth and Manchester City in Bournemouth, England, Tuesday, May 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)
FILE - Then Chelsea's head coach Enzo Maresca reacts during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Atalanta and Chelsea, in Bergamo, Italy, Dec. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni, File)
Manchester City's head coach Pep Guardiola greets fans before the English FA Cup final soccer match between Chelsea and Manchester City in London, Saturday, May 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Pelham)
Manchester City's head coach Pep Guardiola greets fans at the end of the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester City and Crystal Palace in Manchester, England, Wednesday, May 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Ian Hodgson)
FILE - Manchester City's head coach Pep Guardiola greets fans at the end of the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester City and Brentford in Manchester, Saturday, May 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson, File)
