Did you know that if you are looking for abortion care in the United States you can get misled by fake clinics? Those are called Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPC) and Pregnancy Resources Centers, and they mimic abortion and reproductive health clinics, offering free ultrasounds and assistance. But once you are in, “they can give you false medical advice, faulty sonograms and use coercion to manipulate you into postponing the abortion until it is too late”, according to the documentary ‘Preconceived’.
Directed by Sabrine Keane and Kate Dumke, this documentary sheds light on a reality that many people are unaware of. “CPCs are accused of purposely hiding their pro-life intentions and using questionable tactics to change minds and pregnancy outcomes”, said the creators. “Regardless of politics, we believe in the right to transparent care and feel people in vulnerable positions should be made aware of CPCs and their complexity, so they can be empowered to seek the resources they feel best suit their needs.”
Before you keep reading, you can search for legitimate and real abortion providers here https://www.ineedana.com/ and here https://www.plannedparenthood.org/get-care.
They Are Not Real Clinics
‘Preconceived’ shows that the CPCs use the word healthcare, but they do not provide medical attention, and many of their ultrasounds are performed by people who are wearing scrubs but have no medical license. This affects not only those seeking abortions but also pregnant people who are delayed entry into prenatal care, preventing them from learning about pregnancy complications or medical conditions as a result of visiting a non-licensed clinic.
The documentary shows that some of these centers have biblical imagery and people are told abortion can cause cancer, infertility, hypertension, and inflammatory pelvic disease, which is a lie not backed by any research.
According to researchers, CPCs also provide “sexual education” programs, which primarily consist of abstinence-only messaging, gender essentialism, and anti-LBGTQ philosophies.
The fact that they are not clear about being an anti-abortion organization, makes people looking for abortion care confused, which is one of the goals of these organizations.
CPCs Are Well Positioned in Search Engines
CPCs are at the top of the results for those who Google the term “abortion clinics near me” and while there are 800 abortion clinics and providers in the US, there are more than 2500 of these centers. Often, they are located near Planned Parenthood or other abortion providers and this is by design.
While this is happening, apps like Aya Contigo provide reliable information and resources to get abortion care, regardless of your location.
The documentary highlights that CPCs are also located in low-income communities and attract people who are vulnerable to accepting free services.
This network has created its own database with no privacy protections. CPCs that are not licensed medical clinics cannot legally be held to the privacy provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
They Use Big Data to Track People
In a recording taken at the annual conference of Heartbeat Internacional that was shown in the documentary, one of their speakers says: “We are pulling data to the point that I am tracking the SIM card in your phone… We are going to track your conversations and serve ads. We do all this creepy stuff. If you are not using big data, you are missing this. Because we have the ability to say: “I want this person”, and put a target on their back and follow them. Completely, all around the Internet, whatever they are doing.”
According to The Alliance: State Advocates for Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, “CPCs are collecting massive amounts of client data including detailed sexual and reproductive histories through in-person “counseling,” centralized online chat platforms, and smartphone apps. Investigations reveal CPC client data is stored in a proprietary anti-abortion movement platform designed to function as one mega-database that “serves the whole movement.”
This surveillance can potentially lead to criminalization powered by the fast-growing anti-abortion laws rising in the US.
They Receive Public Funds Earmarked for Sexual Health
Private donors fund the CPCs, but also have “usurped state and federal dollars directed to reproductive health, which has helped encourage their proliferation”, as stated in a study from Duke University. CPCs have taken half a billion dollars from 13 states funding since 2010, which was initially directed to take care of vulnerable populations.
According to the study ‘Designed to Deceive’, developed by The Alliance, “CPCs began to secure public funding in the 1990s. Initially, most taxpayer funding diverted to CPCs came from federal welfare reform and abstinence-only education programs and through esoteric funding streams such as “marriage promotion” programs”.
Title X funds are expressly intended to promote equitable access to contraception, but these centers use them to prevent access to birth control. They say abstinence is the only contraception. “If you have sex you are open the door to pregnancy, whether you want it or not”, one of the center's supporters said in the documentary, despite research from the University of Columbia that confirms that abstinence “education” does not delay sexual initiation or reduce sexual activity.
To access the diapers and free items they provide, sometimes people need to navigate religious and indoctrinating courses or sessions.
They Hide Behind Religion to Avoid Being Regulated
These centers present themselves as religious organizations to avoid regulations and legal actions taken to stop them from using misleading language, which has collapsed under the freedom of speech argument.
How does it work? Most of these centers operate under the umbrella of three larger religious organizations: Care Net, Heartbeat International, and Birthright International, all of which are anti-abortion. Jenifer McKenna, director of the study Designed to Deceive, says in the documentary: “Most are non-profits that provide free services, so they are not governed by most state consumer protection laws or state licensing laws.”
“CPCs have worked very hard to claim their right as a religious-based movement to avoid regulation. California tried to require CPCs to disclose if they were not licensed medical facilities and the Supreme Court ruled that CPCs should not be subject to that kind of regulation because it would violate their right to free speech. Essentially, they are an unregulated industry”, McKenna added.
Crisis Pregnancy Centers Promote Abortion Pill Reversal
The CPCs also promote abortion pill reversal, which means stopping people from using misoprostol after mifepristone and giving them a high dose of progesterone. They say that is the way they can stop an abortion. But there is no evidence it is effective or it is safe because the only study about it was halted to protect participants because of 3 instances of severe hemorrhage requiring ambulance hospital transport.
However, in 14 states, laws specify that healthcare professionals are forced to inform patients of the possibility of reversal, creating “a dangerous precedent of using unsound science to justify laws regulating abortion access, intrude upon the patient-provider relationship, and may negatively affect the emotional and physical health of patients seeking”, according to a study published by the American Public Health Association.
After Deceived, You Are Left Behind
As mentioned in the study above, “evidence suggests that CPCs have a negative individual and public health impact through the dissemination of medically inaccurate information and delaying access to legitimate medical care”, but it also has repercussions on the lives of those who could not get an abortion when they needed it after going to the CPCs.
After being intercepted in the CPCs, some of the people are left to navigate parenthood alone, with no healthcare support affordable childcare, or even housing.
A paper published in the American Medical Association Journal of Ethics highlights that CPCs are unethical and every person needs the right to make medical decisions free of coercion. If you need information about options to have an abortion regardless of the estate, you can go to:
Access the Aya Contigo app for safe, reliable and verifiable information on sexual health issues.
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