Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Congressional Report Finds CPCs Mislead 87% of Women

The following article is from Change.org

The debate between pro-choice and pro-life groups is one of the most divisive in politics. But one thing that everyone should be able to agree on is that information provided to pregnant women in reproductive health clinics should be medically accurate.

However, a new investigative video reveals a disturbing trend of fake family planning clinics around the country, called Crisis Pregnancy Centers, which advertise themselves as providing "abortion services" only to give false medical information to women in order to pressure them not to have an abortion.

This deception was initially documented in a Congressional report which found that 87 percent of the 3,500 Crisis Pregnancy Centers nationwide misinform women about birth control and reproductive rights. This includes telling women that abortion will dramatically increase their risk of breast cancer, could impact their future fertility, and may cause them severe mental health problems — all statements that have been discredited by major medical and scientific bodies.

There is also documentation of the use of an alarming tactic of telling pregnant women considering an abortion that they're not actually pregnant, hoping that by the time these women realize they are, it will be too late for them to access an abortion.

Fortunately, local communities are starting to fight back. This past week, the city of Austin, Texas voted into law a measure that will require Crisis Pregnancy Centers to post signs stating that they do not provide information on abortion or comprehensive birth control. And other cities are passing similar truth-in-advertising measures.

But we can't stop there. Shockingly, many of these fake clinics receive millions of dollars a year in government funding under the pretense of providing "family planning services," and there is now a movement in Congress to remove their federal funding and stop their deceptive advertising practices. You can join the movement to fight the misinformation here.


Von said...

The next question is what happens to the babies of these women who are lied to?

Anonymous said...

So lemme get this straight. The CPCs tell women:

1. do not make a permanent decision based on a temporary situation.
2. abortion can cause cancer and serious mental health issues.

Assuming they are also in bed with adoption agencies (they are here), Christian adoption agencies

1. encourage even coerce women to make a permanent decision based on a temporary situation
2. poo-poo the MANY credible studies that indicate that adoptees are over represented in mental health, and that birth mothers often have grief that is unrelenting.