Crisis Pregnancy Centers Defend the Right to Lie

Not much time today. Here’s a 6 month old story: Montgomery County, Maryland passed a law saying if you wanted to offer pregnancy counseling without a licensed doctor on staff, you had to say you didn’t, and post a sign saying that the state suggests you see a real doctor.

Crisis Pregnancy Centers are basically anti-abortion organizations pretending to be confidential medical clinics. They are not regulated by HIPAA and are not staffed by licensed medical care providers. They give pregnancy tests and then try to shame and scare women out of getting an abortion, in some cases even before the test results come in. Women walk in thinking they’re seeing a real doctor, and in fact they’re just seeing preachy evangelicals in lab coats and latex gloves.

That’s the point of having licensing for medicine in the first place, right?

Well a Crisis Pregnancy Center sued them, saying it infringed on their right to free speech. No, my conservative friends, you have no right to make women think you’re a medical clinic when you really aren’t.

Check out these links:

Medical News: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/172119.php

A Post Editorial letter in defense of CPCs:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/22/AR2009112201605.html

Local MD blogger: http://www.sarahsaysblog.com/2010/10/crisis-pregnancy-centers.html

NARAL: http://www.prochoiceamerica.org/media/fact-sheets/abortion-cpcs.pdf
NARAL MD investigation: http://www.prochoicemaryland.org/assets/files/cpcreportfinal.pdf

The Maryland lawsuit: http://bluewavenews.com/blog/2010/05/31/crisis-pregnancy-center-in-maryland-sues-county-so-they-can-keep-lying-to-women/

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