Law provides statutory recognition to stillborn children, acknowledging loss suffered by parents
MADISON, WI… Bipartisan legislation authored by Senator André Jacque (New Franken) and Representative Lindee Brill (Sheboygan Falls) to provide state recognition to stillbirth parents, after overwhelmingly passing both the State Senate and Assembly, was signed into law today by Governor Tony Evers as Act 241.
In response to the testimony over the last several sessions shared by mothers who have endured this tragedy, Senator Jacque reintroduced legislation to provide financial support to those who have endured stillbirth. Act 241 provides a $2,000 nonrefundable individual income tax credit to parents of stillborn children.
“This law speaks to a kind of loss that is often invisible, deeply painful, and too often endured in silence,” said Jacque. “The stillbirth of a child is not simply a medical event. It is the loss of a son or daughter, of hopes and plans, of a future that a family had already begun to imagine and love.”
In Wisconsin, over 300 mothers each year must endure the trauma of stillbirth. These parents experience many of the same expenses of newborn parents, such as delivery costs. They also have other expenses such as funeral costs, counseling, and lost time at work, while not necessarily having access to the same maternity leave benefits of other mothers.
“Although nothing can compensate for the loss of a child, establishing this tax credit will alleviate some of the financial burden stillbirth parents face, while giving meaningful, statutory recognition to the loss of their child,” said Jacque.
Senator André Jacque represents Northeast Wisconsin’s First Senate District, consisting of Door and Kewaunee Counties and portions of Brown, Calumet, Manitowoc, and Outagamie counties.
