Thursday, Apr. 13, 2023
Are there penalties in Wisconsin for people who take an abortion pill?
Abortion is generally illegal in Wisconsin, but state laws do not penalize those who get one.
Wisconsin’s 1849 abortion law, reinstated after the June 2022 repeal of Roe v. Wade, prohibits abortion except when “necessary to save the life of the mother.”
A 2011 state law required that abortion-inducing drugs be prescribed by a physician who examines the patient and is present when the pills are taken.
Both laws carry felony penalties for providers, but people who receive an abortion are exempted from any penalties. Wisconsinites may obtain the pills in a neighboring state where abortion is legal.
An April 7, 2023 ruling by a federal judge in Texas would revoke the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's approval of mifepristone, one of two main pills used in medication abortions. The decision is stayed to give the FDA time to appeal.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- Wisconsin State Legislature 940.04 Abortion
- Wisconsin State Legislature Prescription and use of abortion-inducing drug
- Wisconsin Public Radio FDA OKs pharmacies to provide abortion pill, but in Wisconsin things are more complicated
- Kaiser Family Foundation Q & A: Implications of Two Conflicting Federal Court Rulings on the Availability of Medication Abortion and the FDA’s Authority to Regulate Drugs
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