MADISON – Today, the Wisconsin State Assembly voted several of anti-abortion bills aimed at blocking access to abortion in Wisconsin. Representative Dianne Hesselbein (D-Middleton) released the following statement regarding the bills on the floor today:
“Wisconsin Republicans were able to rush these anti-abortion bills through the legislative process, simply due to partisan gerrymandering. These wildly unpopular policies take personal healthcare decisions about pregnancy and give them to politicians. Republicans know that they need to put forward this extreme legislation to appease their gerrymandered districts.
“Even though we have seen these tactics before it is worth repeating: abortion is healthcare. Choosing to have an abortion is a deeply personal decision that should be reserved for the pregnant person and their doctor. No one else should intervene in these healthcare decisions, especially not a male-dominated legislature.
“Rather than passing these dangerous bills, we should be working to improve healthcare access and equity across our state. One important policy the Republicans shelved this year was the Healthy Women, Healthy Babies Initiative championed by Governor Evers in his budget. This policy could have improved birth outcomes, expanded Medicaid postpartum eligibility for women up to one year, and reduced disparities in maternal and infant mortality.
“Gerrymandering got us to where we are today. Instead of passing legislation to help families and their babies, we are forced to fight against legislation that rolls back the clock on healthcare.”
