WATCH: Baldwin Speaks Out on Abortion Restrictions Driving Away Providers, Impact on Women’s Freedom to Choose

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) joined a press conference highlighting the ongoing negative impacts of overturning Roe v. Wade on women’s right to control their bodies and access necessary health care. Senator Baldwin discussed how abortion bans have harmed Wisconsin’s reproductive health care workforce, including newly released data that found reductions in applicants to residency programs located in states with abortion bans, including Wisconsin.

“The stark reality is that since Republicans overturned Roe v. Wade, women have been stripped of the right to decide what is best for their families and it’s led to dire impacts. Sadly, the consequences don’t stop there,” said Senator Baldwin. “Now, we’re seeing fewer doctors choose Wisconsin to start their careers, which means fewer doctors to deliver babies and fewer doctors to give necessary routine care. We have a solution and it's passing our bill to finally restore Roe and let women decide what is best for them. Not the federal government. Not state governments. Women.”

The press conference comes on the heels of new data from the Association of American Medical Colleges Research and Action Institute, which found that, for the second year in a row, graduating medical students are less likely to choose residency programs in states with abortion bans or severe abortion restrictions. In Wisconsin, medical schools saw a 10.4% drop in OB/GYN applications from 2022-23 to 2023-24, and a 6.3% drop across all specialties during that same time.

Nationwide, the analysis found a 4.2% decrease in the number of applicants for residency programs in states with near-total abortion bans. For OB-GYN residency applicants, states where abortion is banned saw a 6.7% decrease in the number of applicants. Also this month, polling from CNBC/Generation Lab found that nearly two-thirds of respondents between 18-34 would “probably not” or “definitely not” live in a state that banned abortion, and 45% of respondents said they would “definitely reject” or “probably reject” a job offer located in a state where abortion is illegal.

Before Dobbs, many women in Wisconsin already faced long drives and wait times to find obstetrics and gynecological care – especially in rural areas. Back in 2019, over forty percent of Wisconsin’s rural hospitals did not provide obstetric services.

Senator Baldwin leads the Women’s Health Protection Act in the Senate, federal legislation to guarantee access to abortion, everywhere across the country and restore the right to comprehensive reproductive health care for millions of Americans.

A full video of the press conference is available here.

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