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Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2022

Does Wisconsin have the oldest abortion ban in the nation?

Erin Gretzinger, Wisconsin Watch
yes

Wisconsin's 1849 ban on abortion is the oldest in the nation that could go into effect post-Roe, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health advocacy and research organization.

While it is not clear if the ban is in effect currently — Gov. Tony Evers and Attorney General Josh Kaul are challenging that in court — clinics have stopped providing abortions amid the legal uncertainty. 

The law makes it a felony for anyone besides the mother to “intentionally (destroy) the life of an unborn child.” The law has an exception for "therapeutic abortions" to “save the life of the mother,” but the meaning of that antiquated term is unclear.

Several other states also have bans from the 1800s that were left on the books following the Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, including Arizona, Arkansas, Michigan, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Texas and West Virginia.  

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