Illinois prepares for influx of abortion-seeking Wisconsin women

CHICAGO, Ill. (WTVO) — Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin is pausing abortion services due to Medicaid funding cuts, marking the first instance of such an action in the United States.

The funding cuts stem from the ‘Big Beautiful Bill,’ which has blocked Planned Parenthood’s access to federal Medicaid funds. Although Medicaid is not used for abortions, the cuts are forcing Wisconsin clinics to halt abortion services to continue treating other patients.

“With the sharp reduction in abortion access expected in Wisconsin in less than a week, we anticipate a large influx of patients once again forced to travel to Illinois for this basic health care,” said Dr. Allison Cowett of Family Planning Associates.

Illinois is preparing for an influx of patients from Wisconsin who may need to cross state lines to access abortion services.

“We will not abandon people when they need us. We will be here with open arms to support the needs of our neighbors,” said Megan Jeyifo, executive director of the Chicago Abortion Fund.

Earlier this month, a federal appeals court ruled that the government could halt Medicaid payments while a lawsuit challenging the funding cuts moves forward.

All facts in this report were gathered by journalists employed by WTVO. Artificial intelligence tools were used to reformat from a broadcast script into a news article for our website. This report was edited and fact-checked by WTVO staff before being published.