Calls for expansion of IVF and family building services for veterans and treatment without direct proof that infertility was caused during deployment.

A 2014 government study of over 30,000 Iraq- and Afghanistan-era war veterans found that 15.8 percent of women and 13.8 percent of men reported they had experienced infertility — meaning they struggled to conceive with a partner for more than a year. Meanwhile, infertility among the general population was as low as 8 percent. The frenetic pace of serving in the military, combined with injuries and toxic exposures, doubles the rate at which service members experience infertility.

Toxic Deployment areas were confirmed and listed in the PACT ACT years after servicemembers left those areas. Due to this delay in confirming the toxicity, there should not be a requirement that veterans have something in their medical records showing that the infertility was caused by deployment. Veterans' only requirement should be to prove they were, in fact, deployed to the toxic area and /or combat zone.

Over the years, red tape and confusion with approvals and disapprovals have negatively impacted countless veterans who have started the IVF Process under approval and then were later told they were not approved. This has resulted in cases where eggs have been removed from Women Veterans and placed in a freezer, accumulating significant storage fees. The VA should cover the cost of storage and allow the veterans to complete the process. The VA has recently released expanded Reproductive Assistance Access, but it still falls short of what Active Duty Service Members are offered.

The Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States urges Congress to significantly expand veteran access to fertility treatment and counseling options, including assisted reproductive technology like IVF, and to conduct a study on the long-term reproductive health needs of veterans.