Post-Roe World is Complex for Wisconsin Medical Professionals

Candice Marshall was on a study abroad trip when she had sex with a man she had known for a few days. When she found out she was pregnant, she went to a local women’s health clinic to figure out her options.

“The pregnancy test put me in panic mode,” Marshall said. “I’ve never imagined having a child, much less in a place I was visiting with a man I didn’t know.”

“I was happy I had the choice to terminate the pregnancy,” said Marshall, whose name has been changed to protect her privacy. “The state of my life was no place for a child.”

The Guttmacher Institute reports that in 2020, for every 1,000 women in the United States, there were about 15 abortions performed.

On June 24, 2022, Roe v. Wade was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court and Wisconsin became one of 13 states where abortion is illegal. Gov. Tony Evers has been fighting the abortion ban by filing a lawsuit to appeal the legislation. Each effort to allow exceptions to the ban has been opposed by Republican legislators.

The Dobb’s Decision that reversed Roe v. Wade states that abortion can only be provided in an “emergency or in the case of a severe fetal abnormality.” This new ruling has confused medical professionals about where the line for helping patients is. Since there is no definition for what constitutes as a threat to a woman’s life, they are unsure of how to help women who seek a medical abortion.

Lisa Boyce is a spokesperson for Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, which is shifting its priorities to help women access abortion outside of the state. She describes Planned Parenthood as a reproductive health care provider for people seeking assistance with family planning, birth control, sex education, vaccinations and referral services.

“There are some people who may think the only services we provided were abortion services,” Boyce said, “when in fact, within our 22 health centers, only three facilities provided abortion care—Sheboygan, Madison and Milwaukee.”

The three locations that performed abortions before it was banned are now resource centers for women. Most patients don’t know what services are still provided in Wisconsin or where to go to get the help they need. Medical professionals at these locations direct women to places that can legally help them, perform ultrasounds and provide pregnancy dating services to help the women determine whether they are eligible for a medication abortion.

“The other services we provide is just navigation for people,” Boyce said. “They may not have transportation to travel outside of the state, so we will work with each woman to either get them a bus ticket or piece together a plan that will meet their needs.”

Some doctors have moved to states where abortion is legal; others help pregnant women navigate their next steps. With the surge of patients in surrounding states like Illinois and Michigan, medical professionals have been traveling to help with the overflow.

“The Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin team travels to Planned Parenthood of Illinois, primarily in Waukegan area health center experiencing a 10-fold of patients from Wisconsin,” Boyce said.

Serving women in need, however, has become a gray area for medical professionals. Dr. Lisa Barroilhet was the interim chair for the OBGYN department this summer at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, helping physicians navigate the new normal.

The Marquette Poll found that 72% of Americans oppose the overturn of Roe v. Wade, and 51% of people don’t believe there should be a restriction to access an abortion.

Charles Franklin is a professor of Law and Public Policy and the director of the Marquette Law School Poll. He described America’s public opinion on abortion access as consistently supportive in all or most circumstances for the past 10 years. Since the Dobbs decision in June, support has risen slightly, but he predicts there is a long process for lawmakers before they settle on new policy.

“The complexities of the topic are just beginning to come out,” Franklin said. “What the 50 states are doing now is learning how to deal with and construct a new legal regime under this new post-Roe legal status.”

Franklin says almost 90% of Democrats oppose the Dobbs decision; however, they avoid answering how late an abortion should be allowed. Republicans are beginning to question if there should be exceptions to the law regarding how long a woman is pregnant before getting an abortion.

“A lot of the passion-based arguments could be ignored when Roe was in place,” Franklin said. “Now, without Roe, the complexities are starting to come out, and lawmakers have to make these rules.”

Franklin questions whether there should be laws that distinguish between medically necessary abortions, versus abortions that are due to free choice of continuing with a pregnancy.

Wisconsin Right to Life believes there is only one reason for a woman to get an abortion.

“Every abortion takes an innocent human life,” said Gracie Skogman, a legislative and PAC director of Wisconsin Right to Life. “Life should be protected from moment of conception, unless it necessary to save the woman’s life.”

“We are overjoyed that Roe has been overturned,” Skogman continued, “however, we would still like to have a conversation about medical emergency exceptions.”

Wisconsin Right to Life has built a coalition of pregnancy resource centers in the state with the goal of working on legislation to provide resources for research centers for educating womenand an emergency grant program to cover costs for women who fiscally can’t afford to have a child. They have also promoted a “heart beat law,” to protect the fetus when a heartbeat is present.

“The conversation starts with scientific truth about the development of life,” Skogman said. “Abortion is not healthcare; it’s taking a life.”

The General Social Survey analyzes public opinion on abortion and the circumstances involved in the morality of it. “Morality was always part of the conversation but not part of the scale,” General Social Survey said when discussing The Case of Abortion Attitudes. In order for the conversation about abortion to evolve, people must consider it a living discourse; that is, consider “social, legal, and political context” that have evolved with the affected topic.