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MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Anti-abortion activists and some Wisconsin lawmakers are continuing their push for restrictions despite the U.S. Supreme Court extinguishing one piece of the state's abortion laws Tuesday.
The Supreme Court rejected a Wisconsin appeal seeking to reinstate a law requiring doctors who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals. The decision came a day after the nation's highest court struck down a similar Texas law, ruling its regulations are medically unnecessary and unconstitutionally limit a woman's right to an abortion.
Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin, the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin and other groups said they hope the decision sends a clear message to anti-abortion politicians that abortion is a constitutionally protected right.
Yet anti-abortion advocates and legislators said they aren't deterred in their efforts.
"We know when the pro-abortion side loses in the Legislature they try to find activist judges to overturn the law that we are passing," said Heather Weininger, executive director of Wisconsin Right to Life.
Rep. Jesse Kremer, a Republican from Kewaskum, said the ruling just means they need to regroup and keep working harder. He said he plans to propose a bill requiring doctors to inform patients of the ability to reverse medication abortions after taking the drug.
"It doesn't save every baby and it has to be done pretty quickly, but if someone does take the drug and they have second thoughts a few days afterward, there is the potential that they can save those babies," Kremer said.
The claims behind those reversals are disputed. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists said claims of reversal aren't supported by scientific evidence.
But Kremer said the potential to stop it is "something people would want to know."
Weininger said the Wisconsin Right to Life group is also pushing to ban so-called "dismemberment abortion" in the next session and hopes to revive a bill that would outlaw research using tissue obtained from aborted fetuses.
Rep. Andre Jacque, a De Pere Republican who authored the fetal tissue bill, said he intends to bring it forward again next session. The bill gained initial support last session, but some GOP legislators cooled on it after researchers said it could stall research into potentially life-saving treatments and cures.
Jacque and Kremer both said they would also be supportive of a ban on dilation-and-extraction, a common second-trimester abortion technique that opponents call "dismemberment abortions." Several states have recently banned the practice.
Republican Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald said in a statement he fully expects to see bills related to abortion introduced in the next session and will review them at that time.
Gov. Scott Walker said in a statement Tuesday he'll continue to protect the sanctity of life. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, a Republican, also said in a statement Monday he wasn't deterred by the Supreme Court decision.
"As a pro-life legislator, I will continue to support legislation that protects the life of an unborn child and the health of the mother," Vos said.
Planned Parenthood Legal and Policy Associate Mel Barnes said although the Supreme Court's ruling this week was a landmark victory, abortion is still highly regulated and restricted in Wisconsin — a practice she expects to continue.
"We've seen a record number of restrictions in Wisconsin that have been politically motivated and designed to put a block in the path of women seeking safe and legal care," Barnes said.
Wisconsin currently requires a 24-hour waiting period before an abortion, requires women to undergo an ultrasound prior to an abortion and bans abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy.
"Far too many women still face insurmountable barriers," Barnes said.
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