l Was Tricked By A 'Fake Reproductive Health Center.' Now I'm Fighting For Other Women.

[riversedge]

Chipping away at women's reproductive health decisions is the US is now on!!

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07/03/2018 07:24 pm ET Updated 5 days ago
l Was Tricked By A ‘Fake Reproductive Health Center.’ Now I’m Fighting For Other Women.


https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/fake-reproductive-health-centers_us_5b3bac71e4b09e4a8b27fc0b?utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=hp_fb_pages&ncid=tweetlnkushpmg00000067&utm_source=main_fb

Lizz Winstead


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While hard work and a lot of luck played a large part in my success, another crucial reason I was able to pursue my dreams was that I had access to a safe and legal abortion at the age of 17.

But the path to getting that care was not easy. In fact, it was paved with deception because as a pregnant teenager, I was tricked by an ad on a bus for a fake woman’s health center, also known as a “crisis pregnancy center.”

Most people have never heard of “fake reproductive health centers” and yet there are over 4,000 of them across the country. These centers pose as women’s health clinics, despite often having no licensed medical professionals on staff. They exist solely for the purpose of luring women in the door and counseling them against abortion. Compare that to the just under 800 comprehensive reproductive healthcare clinics that provide a wide range of actual medical care, including abortion.

The “crisis pregnancy center” that lured me in and deceived me is the exact kind of fake clinic that SCOTUS, in a 5-4 decision in NIFLA v. Becerra last week, ruled has the constitutional right to deceive women about their reproductive care.

National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA) is the organization representing fake clinics in this case, and Attorney General of California Xavier Becerra represented the state. The case is pretty simple: In 2015, the state of California passed a law called, “The FACT Act”― simple legislation with two requirements:

First, it requires any licensed community clinic whose “primary purpose is providing family planning or pregnancy-related services” to disclose to all patients that the state of California offers “free or low-cost contraception, prenatal care, and abortion.” This is important. The FACT Act doesn’t require them to refer or promote any of these services, it simply requires they must let the patient know the state provides them at low or no cost.

Second, the law also requires that the unlicensed fake clinics disclose in both their facilities and in their ads that they are not licensed, medical providers.

NIFLA argued that enforcing laws that require transparency in health care is “forced speech” and violates the First Amendment and the Supreme Court agreed. What this means is that any licensed community clinic that provides reproductive care and is opposed to abortion can legally deny pregnant people information about how to access one. Even worse, the decision grants unlicensed, sham clinics the constitutional right to continue hiding the fact that they are not REAL health care providers, allows them to continue to dress up in lab coats impersonating doctors, to perform ultrasounds, give women whatever results they feel like and then lie to you and me about the safety of abortion or how to even access abortion...............................................






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These centers are often run by conservative Christian groups who say they just want to counsel women on alternatives to abortion. However, in reality, many of them pose as women’s health clinics, despite often having no licensed medical professionals on staff.

[Ohiogal]

1. These are the kinds of decisions we'll get

from a majority zealous right wing SCOTUS.

These so-called "clinics" are basically just Christian propaganda outlets and it should be illegal to advertise them as anything but.

[kimbutgar]

2. Maybe some smart activists should be spraying painting on the sidewalk at night "fake clinic"

Doing this act of civil disobedience would help expose them.

Hashtag lists of fake clinics and have protesters outside of them like they do at planned parenthood.