"Do not ignore ability": ER nurse fights for the right of amputees to join the Armed Forces
Spokane, Washington — Hannah Cvancara is motivated, physically fit and patriotic — everything the U.S. military desires, except for a condition the military considers disqualifying: an amputated left foot, which occurred when she was just 10 months old, the result of a rare birth defect.
"I've never counted it as part of my identity," Cvancara told CBS News. "I'm just Hannah, who happens to be missing a leg."
However, she hasn't slowed down since. She rock climbs, snowboards, surfs and hikes, and took part in swim team, track and volleyball in school.
But while her amputation hasn't stopped her at all, the military has, rejecting her from the Navy.
"The subject applicant does not meet established physical standards," the Navy's rejection letter to Cvancara in March 2022 read.
Active-duty troops who lose limbs are still eligible to serve. But for those seeking to enlist, the "current absence of a foot" is automatically disqualifying, according to the Defense Department's Medical Standards for Military Service
When contacted by CBS News about the policy, a Defense Department spokesperson said in a statement Monday that, "At this time, there are no changes to policy, and it would be inappropriate to speculate on the future. We have no additional information to provide."
Cvancara's desire to get into the military comes at a time when recruitment numbers have reached their lowest levels since the Vietnam War.
"Our recruitment is suffering, and there are plenty of people with the right heart to serve that can't," Cvancara argues.
Cvancara is in training to try and enlist again by seeking a medical waiver to join the Washington Air National Guard. She is also a full-time ER nurse — often on her feet for 12-hour shifts — and wants to continue doing her job while in uniform.
"She adds a joy," Cvancara's father, Lt. Col. Joseph Cvancara, a retired Air Force flight surgeon, said of his daughter. "Her middle name is Joy. And she fits it. She perseveres."
Alex Gates, Cvancara's prosthetist, says medical progress has been met by antiquated thinking.
"The rule was written back when prosthetics were made out of wood and leather," said Gates, adding that he believes Hannah is "more able-bodied than most people that we come in contact with every day."
Hannah has also taken her challenge to Congress, lending her name to a House bill — the "Hannah Cvancara Service Act" — that would change the U.S. military's policy on the issue.
Hannah says she understands the policy, and acknowledges the concern that an amputee could be viewed as someone unable to deploy easily. But the waiver she's seeking would apply to a medical position. And that advancements in prosthetics have allowed amputees to take a far more active role than what may have been possible in the past.
"I'm not asking that we ignore disability and pretend it doesn't exist," Hannah said. "Rather, that we do not ignore ability."