State Republican Bill Banning Abortion After 14 Weeks Does Not Include Exceptions for Rape or Incest

Tuesday, January 23rd, 2024 -- 2:00 PM

(Jessie Opoien, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) A proposal seeking to ban abortion 14 weeks after "probable fertilization" does not include exceptions for cases of rape or incest because "a 14-week timeframe is a long enough timeframe to make a decision," a bill co-author told lawmakers on Monday.

According to Jessie Opoien with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, lawmakers on the Assembly Committee on Health, Aging and Long-Term Care heard testimony on a bill introduced Friday that would ban abortion after 14 weeks of pregnancy except in situations where the mother's life or health would be endangered without the procedure, a measure that would reduce the timeframe for legal abortions in Wisconsin by six weeks.

The bill requires voters to approve the policy before it could take effect and received a hearing the same day Vice President Kamala Harris visited Waukesha County to promote the Biden administration's focus on preserving abortion access ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

Harris blasted the bill, calling it a proposal from "extremists" because it does not include exceptions for pregnancies resulting from rape and incest. Rep. Lisa Subeck, D-Madison, asked bill co-author Rep. Amanda Nedweski, R-Pleasant Prairie, why the bill does not contain those exceptions.

Nedweski countered that 14 weeks should be enough time for a woman to know she is pregnant and decide whether to continue that pregnancy and noted that she supported a bill last year that would have allowed doctors to provide abortions to victims of rape and incest and in situations when the mother is experiencing serious pregnancy complications.

"I'm not going to debate the science of biology here, but as a mother, and having known people who thought they didn't know they were pregnant, I have a really hard time believing that somebody who doesn't know they're pregnant at 14 weeks wants to know. Maybe they just don't want to know. I don't know that," Nedweski said.

"But we have technology and medical advancements today that can tell you if you are pregnant the day after conception. So if you want to know if you're pregnant, you can find out."

Subeck responded, "I'm not prepared to make those judgments about what a 13-year-old who may be a victim of rape or incest may or may not know or may or may not have access to."

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