The Oakland Life Enrichment Committee on Tuesday considered an ordinance that seeks to deter antiabortion-rights crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) from engaging in misleading advertising practices that falsely suggest they offer abortion care, KQED's "State of Health" reports.
The ordinance advanced to the full City Council where it will be put to two votes. The votes are expected to take place in July.
Concern over CPCs' practices
Officials in Oakland, California, have raised concerns about antiabortion-rights groups' false advertising on the internet and on mass transit billboards. Officials note that the groups target pregnant women seeking abortion care with the intention of drawing them to CPCs, which aim to deter or prevent them from having an abortion.
According to "State of Health," CPCs purchase internet search ads for terms such as "abortion" or "pregnancy test," to ensure links for their centers' websites appear higher in search engine results. The websites often will note that they provide services such as "abortion information" or "counseling for women seeking abortion."
Annie Campbell Washington, vice mayor of Oakland and a supporter of the Oakland ordinance, noted that CPCs' practices can delay women's access to abortion care. She explained that such delays could force a woman to postpone abortion care until later in pregnancy, potentially until after the point in pregnancy at which she can no longer obtain care.
Washington said, "When a woman is misled into believing that a clinic offers services that it does not in fact offer, she loses time crucial to her decision-making process." She added, "We believe women who need care should not be lied to."
Ordinance details
The Oakland ordinance would expand on protections for pregnant women included in a recently enacted state law (Dembosky, "State of Health," KQED, 6/28). Under California's Reproductive Freedom, Accountability, Comprehensive Care, and Transparency (FACT) Act (AB 775) licensed facilities that provide services related to pregnancy and family planning must inform women how and where they can access affordable and timely abortion, contraception and prenatal care services. Unlicensed facilities must disclose to patients that the facilities are not licensed and that they have no licensed providers on staff (Women's Health Policy Report, 6/16).
Under the Oakland ordinance, CPCs that falsely claim to provide abortion care would be fined between $50 and $500 per violation ("State of Health," KQED, 6/28).
