Doctor Discusses Being Able to Provide Abortion Services in Wisconsin Again

Thursday, September 21st, 2023 -- 12:00 PM

(Jessica Van Egeren, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) For more than year, Dr. Allie Linton could not provide the full spectrum of reproductive health care to her patients in Wisconsin.

According to Jessica Van Egeren with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, needless to say, she did not like it. On Monday, that changed. Linton, Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin's associate medical director, again met with patients seeking an abortion.

For her, it was a sense of relief after a year of professional frustration. "I have been feeling very thankful that we can return to this level of care," Linton told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel prior to seeing patients Monday. "It sounds cliche to say, but abortion is health care. And to be able to have patients access to health care in their state again is incredibly important."

It is estimated that more than 7,080 fewer abortions were performed in Wisconsin in the year following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, according to #WeCount, a project of The Society of Family Planning, a nonprofit that advocates for abortion and contraception care informed by science.

That ended Monday with Planned Parenthood again providing the procedure in two clinics, one in Milwaukee and one in Madison. Its Sheboygan clinic again will provide the procedure when staffing levels are met.

While it is not possible to determine how many patients were unable to travel to another state to obtain care, it is clear many traveled south to Illinois, where abortions are legal until fetal viability, or around 24-26 weeks of pregnancy.

“We are thrilled Wisconsin patients have a choice and are not forced to flee their state for health care and clinicians can provide care in their home state," Jennifer Welch, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Illinois said in a statement Monday.

Given Wisconsin's still limited availability, she acknowledged her state may still be an option. "We are proud to serve patients from Wisconsin and look forward to continuing our partnership in a meaningful way." That partnership began a month after the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision overturned Roe v Wade.

Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin and Planned Parenthood of Illinois agreed to expand capacity at the Waukegan Health Center and other Planned Parenthood locations in Illinois by allowing abortion care providers from Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin to travel and work at the clinics several times a week.

Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.