CHICAGO — With Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds poised to sign a 6-week abortion ban into law on Friday, Illinois Planned Parenthood's president and CEO wants Iowans to know they can receive care just across the Mississippi River.
Iowa’s Republican-led Legislature passed a bill banning most abortions after roughly six weeks of pregnancy during a marathon special session Tuesday that continued late into the night. Reynolds ordered the special session after the state's Supreme Court declined to reinstate a practically identical law that she signed in 2018.
In June 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the statute previously allowing abortions across the nation. This allowed Reynolds to call the legislature to a special session to move forward with an updated version of the 2018 law this week.
In the 2023 bill, more exemptions have been added.
In cases of rape, the crime must be reported within 45 days to law enforcement, and within 140 days in cases of incest, prior to seeking medical care. The bill also allows abortion in cases of a miscarriage or when the fetus is declared incompatible with life by a physician.
“This is a sad day for Iowa residents who are facing a draconian 6-week abortion ban, a time when many people are unaware they are even pregnant," said Illinois Planned Parenthood President and CEO Jennifer Welch in a statement. "Abortion bans and restrictions do not stop people from having abortions, it just creates unnecessary and burdensome barriers to those most vulnerable like young people, immigrants, people living in poverty and people facing domestic violence."
Abortion is currently legal in Iowa up to 20 weeks of pregnancy. The legislation will take immediate effect with the governor’s signature and will prohibit almost all abortions once cardiac activity can be detected, which is usually around six weeks of pregnancy and before many people know they are pregnant.
"Already Illinois is welcoming more abortion patients than any other state; our doors are open and we are actively preparing for the waves of pregnant Iowans fleeing their home in search of care," Welch's statement says. "We continue to fight for everyone to access the health care they need and deserve.”
The closest Planned Parenthood facility in Illinois to Iowa is in Peoria, however, that facility is closed because a 32-year-old Chillicothe, Illinois man admitted to throwing a Molotov cocktail into the building back in January. Other facilities can be found by clicking/tapping here.
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