The Center Square: Spanberger sponsors bill to waive passport fees for injured service members’ families

CENTER SQUARE, MORGAN SWEENEY

Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., joined Rep. Mike Carey, R-Ohio, to introduce a bill to waive passport fees for families visiting a service member injured overseas.

“The last thing military families need is added stress and expense when going to visit their loved one in a time of illness or injury,” Carey said in a statement.Passport fees are already waived for families of American military personnel who have to attend an overseas funeral or memorial service or visit an overseas grave. Spanberger and Carey felt the fees should also be waived for injured service members who have not been medically cleared for travel, as they may be in critical condition, and time is of the essence for them and their families.

“When a parent, spouse, or sibling receives the dreaded phone call that their loved one has been injured in combat, that family member should not have to worry about the extra cost of obtaining a passport to be by their side. Our nation’s service members — and their families — deserve our highest standard of care and support for their immense sacrifice,” Spanberger said in a statement.

Spanberger did not seek reelection in the upcoming congressional general election, as she declared in November that she intends to run for governor.