Report: Pro-life pregnancy centers gave record $358.7 million in goods, services to women last year

Pro-life pregnancy centers provided a record $358.7 million in goods and services to help women keep their babies after the end of Roe v. Wade, a report has found.

The pro-life Charlotte Lozier Institute reported this month that 2,750 crisis pregnancy centers nationwide offered the freebies in over 16 million virtual and sit-down meetings with women last year, including 974,965 new clients. The Supreme Court overturned the national right to an abortion in June 2022, returning jurisdiction to the states.

Lozier’s survey of the centers found the estimated $358,725,517 in assistance included ultrasounds, pregnancy testing, parenting classes, diapers, wipes, baby clothing, baby formula, strollers and cribs. That’s an increase of roughly $92 million from the previous record of $266,764,916 in donated goods and services the group estimated in 2019.

Pregnancy centers have faced surging demand and intensifying legal threats from elected Democrats since the high court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, said Michael J. New, a Charlotte Lozier scholar who helped prepare the report.

“In the aftermath of Dobbs, elected officials from politically liberal parts of the country could do little to stop conservative states from legally protecting preborn children,” Mr. New, an assistant professor of social research at the Catholic University of America, told The Washington Times. “As such, they decided to target pro-life pregnancy help centers to curry favor with pro abortion advocacy groups and signal their support for legal abortion.”

The Democrat-led crackdown has included at least two state consumer fraud investigations and warnings about allegedly deceptive advertising.

Democrats have accused some centers of presenting themselves as full-service medical clinics even though they don’t offer abortion. The centers under investigation in New Jersey and Washington make it clear on their websites that they neither provide nor refer for abortions.

Democrats also have persuaded search engines Google and Yelp to steer pregnant women away from pro-life resource centers.

Last year, New York Attorney General Laetitia James lobbied Google Maps in a letter to identify which centers offer or do not offer abortions. Her office has referred to those that do not as “fake pregnancy centers.”

“As reproductive rights are under attack, it’s more important than ever for businesses to do their part to protect access to reproductive care,” Ms. James, a Democrat, said in August 2022. “My office will continue to take action to ensure that every person has the freedom to make their own choices about their bodies.”

In October of this year, California Attorney General Rob Bonta led a coalition of 16 Democratic AGs in signing an open letter supporting similar policy changes at Yelp.

Meanwhile, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Massachusetts Democrat, has launched an investigation accusing pro-life pregnancy centers of “deceptive and misleading advertising.”

The three networks of centers included in the Charlotte Lozier report — Heartbeat International, Care Net and the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates — all make their anti-abortion position clear on their websites.

Out of 62,576 volunteers and staff in the centers Lozier surveyed this year, the report identified only 4,779 as paid medical staff and 5,396 as licensed medical volunteers.

Officials at the Northwest Center, a Washington, D.C.-based member of the Heartbeat International network, said they tell women up front they do not offer medical services.

As of Tuesday, the center had received no threats of legal action from elected officials.

“We want to let women know that it’s possible for them to continue their pregnancy if they choose, that we’re here to provide emotional and material support,” Susan Gallucci, Northwest’s executive director, told The Times. “We can’t take care of every expense, but we can help to ease some of that burden.”