Pentagon to provide funds, help for troops seeking abortionsWASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon will provide travel funds and support for troops and their dependents who seek abortions but are based in states where they are now illegal, according to a new department policy released Thursday.The order issued by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin outlines the rights and protections service members and their dependents will have regardless of where they are based, which was a key concern of troops after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June.“I’ve urged them publicly as president of the United States saying, ‘This is what you should be doing.”’The high court ruling in the Dobbs v. Jackson case stripped away women’s constitutional protections for abortion and left it to states to determine whether the procedure is legal within their borders.The new guidelines also direct each military base to publicly display what reproductive heath care support is available for service members and their dependents, extend the time in which a service member must report a pregnancy to commanders to 20 weeks and provide additional protections for defense health care providers who furnish abortion services.Attorney Natalie Khawam, who represented the family of slain U.S. soldier Vanessa Guillén, whose body was found last year outside the boundary of Fort Hood, Texas, said the policy is part of a continued effort by the Pentagon to address a military culture that has not been supportive of female service members."