overturned Roe vs. Wade, a recent report from# a group that supports Reproductive Rights says## there have been sharp declines in states that# impose new restrictions on abortion access.

One of those states Wisconsin saw# around 7,000 fewer abortions in the## year following the court's decision than the# state's annual average.

Marisa Wojcik of PBS## Wisconsin spoke with doctors there about the# effect on their work and on their patients.

JENN VOLLSTEDT, Former Labor and# Delivery Nurse: When I got the results,## I knew what I wanted to do.

MARISA WOJCIK (voice-over): Jenn Vollstedt# is a former labor and delivery nurse in## Milwaukee.

At 12 weeks pregnant, Volstead# was told something weeks pregnant, she found out she# and her unborn child were at risk.

JENN VOLLSTEDT: I knew that if I carried that# pregnancy to term I was putting my own health## at risk.

And I also knew that my baby if# she survived a term would only suffer.

MARISA WOJCIK (voice-over): Jenn Vollstedt# made her decision while abortion was still## legal.

The cascade of events following the# U.S. Supreme Court's ruling ov constitutional right to an abortion# hit states like Wisconsin the hardest## creating a near total abortion# ban in the state one year ago.

CHRISTOPHER FORD, Emergency Medicine: We have yet## to see wha MARISA WOJCIK (voice-over): Healthcare# providers like Christopher Ford,## a Milwaukee based emergency medicine# physician found themselves in le when the default legal standing reverted# back to a law from 1849.

It says destroying## the life of an unborn child is a felony,# except to save the life of the mother.

CHRISTOPHER FORD: We are in a situation where that## interpretation of a law from# 1849 is really KRISTIN LYERLY, Obstetrician-Gynecologist: We# didn't even know that germs cause disease in 1849.

MARISA WOJCIK (voice-over): Before Roe v.# Wade was overturned, Dr. Kristen Lyerly,## an OB/GYN from Green Bay, counseled patients# at one of the few Planned Parenthood clini in Wisconsin that provided abortions following the# decision she Dr. Ford and Dr. Jenn Jury McIntosh,## a maternal fetal medicine physician in Milwaukee,# joined a lawsuit challenging the 1849 law.

JENN JURY MCINTOSH, Maternal Fetal Medicine: Now# we're operating this narrow channel of providing## the best care not committing malpractice,# and being careful not to break a law.

These## pregnant people either have high risk conditions# themselves, so medical complications.

But on the## flip side, we also take care of fetuses.

So it's# the most Family Centered Outcome that we can.

MARISA WOJCIK (voice-over): Prior to the# Supreme Court's ruling, Wisconsin patients## and physicians had more options when it came to# making decisions KRISTIN LYERLY: We would have conversations# about what all their options were.

We would## talk about everything.

Sometimes we would# connect them with pren we would connect them with adoption services.# Sometimes they would go home and think about## it.

And they just wouldn't return for# that second visit.

But often they did.

MARISA WOJCIK (voice-over): Now these doctors# are managing a much different reality.

JENN JURY MCINTOSH: If it becomes clear# that they're leaning towards a termination, I have to say, unfortunately, this is# illegal in the state of Wisconsin.

And## if this is what you choose to pursue, then# we'll have to give you information on how to## pursue this out of state.

And it feels like# I'm abandoning my patients and saying that.

MARISA WOJCIK (voice-over):# Some physicians like Dr. Lyerly,## left Wisconsin so they can continue to provid KRISTIN LYERLY: I have the joy of working# in rural Minnesota and Northern Arizona on## the Navajo Reservation.

So in a way, it's very# satisfying.

But the truth is, I want to be home.

MARISA WOJCIK (voice-over): For# those who stayed they must now## navigate a law that many doctors feel is un JENN JURY MCINTOSH: It's intrinsically vague,# which then causes physicians to potentially# second guess like is this risky enough?# Because everyone who practices medicine## knows that it can be very gray for a while# and then become very black and white.

And## you the longer you wait to intervene.# The worst outcomes are in general.

CHRISTOPHER FORD: We've heard reports, you know,## in other states that have very strict a you know, we've had patients that have# been told to wait in the car until they## become even more unstable in order to# present to the emergency department So at that point in time, they can do# something about it.

Now, of course,## that's an egregious example.

And that's# something that we that is someone's interpretation of the law.

KRISTIN LYERLY: There was a time when I# sh e was bleeding, she was 21 weeks pregnant# with a desire pregnancy, but she so much that she had to go to the operating room# right away, and I had to perform an abortion.

And I couldn't help but to think to myself,# if this was happening to be in Wisconsin,## I would be terrified about what the# next steps would be about what the## implications for my future my career would be.

MARISA WOJCIK (voice-over): Physicians worry,## not only about the CH RISTOPHER FORD: What I'm seeing over and# over and over again, is this getting worse## over time.

And a lot of it has to do with the# access of health care, with the access of care## to Obstetrics and Gynecology, and a lot of the# voices that are at the table right now.

Don't see## these patients, and they don't have any medical# background, but they're making these decisions.

JENN JURY MCINTOSH: I just want to# do my job.

So the fact that politics## are trying to be present in my exam# room, present in the back of my mind,## as I'm looking at a patient and talking to that# patient and their family, that it's impacting## that at all feels crazy to me.

Because really,# we should just be providing the best evidence## based medical care that we can that's right# for that patient and right for their family.

MARISA WOJCIK (voice-over): And for Jenn# Vollstedt, she hopes in the future Wisconsinites## will be able to navigate these difficult# decisions without the barriers in p JENN VOLLSTEDT: Now, when I look back, I feel# so recovered and healed.

I also wouldn't have## my son if I didn't have this abortion because# of the timing if I had to carry it in term.

Julian, he is -- he just turned six# and he is one of the most joyful and## curious people I've ever met,# the more we try to focus on,## is that right or wrong?

Or is that okay?

The more# we're focused on making choices for other people,## when we're not involved in their health# care, and we're not medical professionals.

MARISA WOJCIK (voice-over): For PBS News Weekend,# I'm Marisa Wojcik, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.