Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin is scheduling appointments for abortions only through June 25 in anticipation of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling striking down Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that legalized abortion. At the same time, “patient navigators” at the organization are preparing to help clients access care in states where abortion will remain legal.
At least one Madison woman facing an unwanted pregnancy in recent days was unable to get an appointment in Wisconsin and instead had to book an appointment at a clinic in Illinois, according to Dr. Jessica Dalby, a family doctor at UW Health who is on the steering committee of Pregnancy Options Wisconsin: Education, Resources & Support Inc. (POWERS). Abortion, says Dalby, “is already inaccessible in Wisconsin.”
A draft decision from the U.S. Supreme Court, leaked in early May, indicates that the high court is planning to overturn Roe. The decision is expected to be released this month.
If the high court does overturn the landmark decision, abortion will be illegal in Wisconsin due to a a criminal abortion ban passed in 1849 that was never removed from the books.
The statute makes it a felony for any person, other than the mother, to “intentionally” destroy the “life of an unborn child.” There are no exceptions for pregnancies resulting from rape or incest or to preserve the health of the mother. The only exception allowed in the statute is to save the life of the mother. In that instance, it would have to be performed by a physician, deemed necessary or “advised by two other physicians as necessary” and, unless an emergency, be performed in a licensed maternity hospital.
If abortion is outlawed in Wisconsin, Lisa Boyce, a spokesperson for Planned Parenthood, encourages women seeking services to first reach out to Planned Parenthood (1-800-230-PLAN). The organization operates 22 health centers around the state, including three that offer abortion (Affiliated Medical Services in Milwaukee also offers abortion); all Planned Parenthood facilities will remain open.
“We are trying to encourage all patients to stop at Planned Parenthood as their first point of contact even if abortion is outlawed because we know we can help make it easier for people to navigate how to get an appointment, where to get an appointment, based on how far along they are and whether they’re interested in a medical versus surgical appointment,” says Boyce. “We know that if Roe falls there are as many as 26 states that could ban access to abortion which means there could be some high volumes going into Illinois or Minnesota [where abortion will remain legal] and our patient navigators will be in the best position to determine how to get patients the quickest care they can.”
Zoie Hawpetoss, who works out of both Planned Parenthood’s clinics in Sheboygan and Manitowoc, says she and other patient navigators are familiarizing themselves with the laws in the states that will still be providing care as well as identifying local and regional resources for funding. She says there will be some patients who can navigate all of that on their own, but for those who can’t, they will have help. “So our job is going to be figuring out where their needs are and the easiest way to get them to their appointment as possible.”
Hawpetoss will also have access to additional financial resources for patients who need help paying for such expenses as transportation for travel. Boyce says Planned Parenthood is seeing an increase in the level of donations dedicated to patient care. Patients can email Planned Parenthood at [email protected].
Planned Parenthood also includes this link on its website for people wishing to search for abortion services on their own.
As of June 19, Affiliated Medical Services in Milwaukee says on its website that its doors are still open. If the Supreme Court does rule as anticipated, the facility will “remain open to help answer questions and to provide resources for out-of-state abortion clinics, travel support and general questions.” The organization suggests contacting the office by phone at 414-240-2018.
POWERS, a volunteer group made up of doctors, doulas, midwives and other health care professionals, is another organization ramping up to serve the increased need of patients seeking abortion services.
Dalby says the group launched a few years ago when she and others in health care started to see women who were trying to access abortion options get caught up in the web of so-called crisis pregnancy centers; these centers do not refer women for abortion or offer abortion services and women can lose crucial time and have fewer options for care if they mistakenly end up there. Dalby says she and others were also seeing more people self-managing their abortions with medication ordered online. They wanted to provide a place for women to call if there were complications or they had any questions.
“We were feeling passionate about supporting people in Wisconsin to navigate the complicated system and rules that exist in Wisconsin” she says. They also wanted to create a place where people could seek comprehensive information about pregnancy care, abortion, adoption and more.
They created a call line (608-514-1714), staffed by volunteer midwives. She says they assumed they would see people calling mostly with medical questions. But, she says, “it was rarely that and mostly about access and funding.” Dalby says the group is working to set up some grant-supported positions to staff the call line.
“We’ve been an all-volunteer organization until now,” she says. “With the growing need and current anticipated need for somebody to help people navigate [their options], the call person is going to be more of a coordinator. If there are medical questions they can connect the person to a volunteer network of midwives and physicians to answer those questions, and they would have expertise to navigate funding and transportation.
“We are lucky to have medical funds in several parts of the state to connect people,” she says. Most of these have worked by providing block grants to clinics that perform abortion services, Dalby adds. Now that there will be additional costs connected to accessing care out of state, including childcare and travel, “I think this is a time to think about and push forward funding for other needed access points.”
The POWERS website will continue to be updated as options shift.
