Madison, Wis. –– Today, Legislative Democrats introduced the Wisconsin Abortion Rights Restoration Act, increasing access to reproductive and abortion care services for people across the state of Wisconsin. The bill states that every individual has a fundamental right to bodily autonomy, including the right to access abortion. It additionally specifies that the state cannot prohibit an individual from obtaining an abortion if an abortion is necessary in the professional judgment of the individual’s medical provider. Representative Priscilla A. Prado released the following statement:
“Bodily autonomy shouldn’t be a polarizing debate. No one, especially the government, should have the authority to control people’s choices about their own body.
“This bill removes outdated restrictions that only served to create barriers, delay care, and endanger lives. It ensures that decisions about abortion are made by patients and their healthcare providers, and respects the privacy, dignity, and health of all people.
The Act additionally removes the 24-hour waiting period and mandatory in-person counseling before an abortion, and shields healthcare providers from penalties under restrictive abortion laws. The bill also guarantees that health insurance plans providing maternity coverage must also include abortion care, ensuring families have complete access to the reproductive healthcare they need.
“Wisconsin’s motto is ‘Forward’, so why, then, are we trying to move our state’s policies backwards by enforcing strict abortion laws? Backwards, to a time when women were viewed and valued as property, and the law did not serve them.
“Now, as reproductive rights are under attack across the country, Wisconsin has the opportunity to lead. No one should be forced to carry a pregnancy against their will, and everyone deserves the freedom to make those deeply personal medical decisions without interference from the government.”
