FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 28, 2021

CONTACT: Betsy Butler, betsy.butler@cwlc.org, 323-951-1041

Los Angeles, CA – The California Women’s Law Center (CWLC) partnered with The Alliance: State Advocates for Women’s Rights and Gender Equality (The Alliance) on a newly-released report exposing how one anti-abortion strategy has been quietly unfolding for decades in states across the country, including California. “Designed to Deceive: A Study of the Crisis Pregnancy Center Industry in Nine States” outlines the activities and funding sources of crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs).

CPCs use deceptive marketing strategies to lure vulnerable pregnant people to their offices, where staff push an anti-abortion agenda instead of offering legitimate healthcare resources and information. These groups provide few or no real medical services and systematically mislead clients about what services they do provide, potentially delaying care and creating unnecessary risks to women’s health. CPCs frequently target people of color and low-income pregnant people.

In California, we found:

• The number of CPCs in California (179) is 20% higher than the number of abortion care clinics
• A majority of CPCs in California make false or biased medical claims about pregnancy and abortion; in fact, CPCs in California are more likely to share deceptive information about abortion than CPCs in other states
• Most CPCs in California do not provide medical care and are not staffed by licensed medical professionals—yet they still receive federal and state dollars for their services

“Although California has strong protections for reproductive healthcare services, including abortion, our state is not immune to the anti-abortion tactics outlined in this report,” said Betsy Butler, Executive Director of the California Women’s Law Center. “Without immediate action, California’s most vulnerable communities will continue to be deceived and denied the care they deserve. CPCs present one more barrier for low-income women seeking care, and our state should actively work to eliminate this inequity.”

The report recommends that California take the following actions to protect pregnant people’s health and increase accountability and transparency for CPCs operating in our state:

• Prohibit CPCs from stating or disseminating false or deceptive information about pregnancy-related activities and reproductive health care
• Prohibit the administration of, and referrals for, the unproven and potentially dangerous “abortion pill reversal”
• Amend the California consumer protection statute to apply to providers of pregnancy-related services without regard to payment
• Explore the possibility of barring any state funding from going to CPCs

Much attention has been paid to the high profile legislative and legal battles threatening abortion access around the country. While CPCs play a quieter role in undermining reproductive health and rights, their proliferation threatens access to abortion and other services, especially for lower-income people and people of color. Even in California, vigilance is needed to ensure all people have access to quality medical care without judgment.  The “Designed to Deceive” report underscores the insidious role CPCs play in hindering access to reproductive care and demands a response that addresses the real barriers pregnant people face.

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California Women’s Law Center
Since its founding in 1989, the California Women’s Law Center (CWLC) has worked to eliminate the barriers that keep women and girls in poverty. The mission of CWLC is to create a more just and equitable society by breaking down barriers and advancing the potential of women and girls through transformative litigation, policy advocacy, and education. CWLC addresses issues pertaining to Title IX education and enforcement, domestic violence, sexual assault, women veterans, equal pay, homelessness, and women’s health. For more information, visit cwlc.org.