November 11, 2009

Montgomery County Council favors forcing crisis pregnancy centers to provide govt-approved message

by Steve Schulin, Maryland Independent Party

Maryland - Seven of the nine members of Montgomery County Council have co-sponsored a resolution which will require pregnancy centers to provide government-approved information. The proposal is characterized as a consumer protection measure to remedy, in the words of Council member Duchy Trachtenberg, the "misleading and medically inaccurate information that's being provided to young women at these centers".

The actual text of the resolution does not appear to be posted on the Council's web site yet, but here's how The Washington Post described it this morning: "A regulation proposed by Montgomery County officials Tuesday would require pregnancy centers run by abortion opponents to give women a disclaimer so they don't mistake the centers for medical clinics and so they understand the source of the information given to them. The centers can appear to be abortion clinics and often bill themselves as places to get information on the procedure, but they seek to dissuade women from ending their pregnancies."

The various press accounts also indicate that the crisis centers will be required to recommend to their customers that they consult with a health care provider before "making a decision".

In an article Sunday, The Washington Examiner cites Rockville Pregnancy Center Executive Director Gail Tierney as saying this type of legislation singles out anti-abortion pregnancy centers to score political points. "I just kind of find it strange as a medical clinic to make us list things we don't do," Tierney said. "It's like having Home Depot having to post a sign saying: We don't sell dresses."

The Washington Post article cites Jacqueline Stippich, executive director of the Shady Grove Pregnancy Center, as questioning the constitutionality of the regulations. "My question is, why are they singling us out?" she said. "Do you think it's constitutional for the government to single out one type of organization over another and to regulate what they are going to say?"

The proposal requires the government-mandated information to be provided in both English and Spanish language.

The resolution entails the Council acting as the County's Board of Health in this matter. A hearing on the proposal is scheduled for December 1 starting at 7:30 pm (Hearing re: "Board of Health Regulation requiring a disclaimer for certain pregnancy resource centers"). To sign up to testify at the hearing, you must call the Council in advance at 240-777-7803.

Among those who have said they support the resolution the Council will be considering are NARAL Pro-Choice Maryland, Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, the D.C. Abortion Fund (DCAF), Potomac Family Planning, NARAL Pro-Choice America, the National Abortion Federation and the National Institute for Reproductive Health. In addition, the measure is supported by Susan Wood, who is an associate professor of Health Policy and of Environmental and Occupational Health for the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services and the executive director of the Jacobs Institute of Women's Health, and Terry O’Neill, president of the National Organization for Women.

Refs:

* Montgomery County Council current agenda (shows sheduled hearings, etc) -- http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/content/council/pdf/agenda/col/cu...

* Washington Examiner story, November 8, 2009 -- http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/MontCo-legislation-would-ta...

* Montgomery County Council press release, November 10, 2009 -- http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/Apps/Council/PressRelease/PR_deta...

* Washington Post story, November 11, 2009 -- http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/10/AR2...

Tonight's hearing in Rockville was well-attended by members of the public. The hearing room was filled, as were two "overflow" conference rooms. I was with an additional 200 or so others watching and listening to the TV feed in the cafeteria. The cafeteria group erupted in applause after speakers against the resolution, and even in the midst of one speaker's comments. Those speaking for the resolution evoked no audible response. Here's a photo from the cafeteria

It may come as no surprise that a similar "controversy" was manufactured earlier this month here in Virginia.


Questions raised about anti-abortion groups getting Va. license plate fee
by Derek Kravitz, Washington Post Staff Writer, Wed., Jan 20, 2010.

-- [snip] --
As of Tuesday, 1,678 of the license plates had been purchased, and $10,170 has been earmarked for Heartbeat, said Melanie Stokes, a DMV spokeswoman, and Heartbeat officials.

Questions about the Mattingly Test Center's status were first raised through a year-long undercover investigation by the nonprofit arm of NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia, the abortion-rights group that has focused its attention on crisis pregnancy centers and the literature they give to pregnant women. The group plans to detail its findings at a Wednesday news conference in Richmond.

In its 39-page report, titled "Crisis Pregnancy Centers Revealed," NARAL Pro-Choice volunteers and workers said they spent a year investigating 52 anti-abortion pregnancy centers in Virginia, finding that 38 do not have medically trained or supervised personnel on staff, and that two-thirds of the centers provided "some degree of medically erroneous information." The report says 16 trained volunteers went undercover to more than two dozen pregnancy centers and posed as women who were worried they were pregnant, said Emily Polak, deputy director of NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia.

"When you're telling women who are scared about unintended pregnancies that condoms have holes and abortions cause cancer, it's a public-health threat," Polak said.

Anti-abortion groups say NARAL's efforts are part of a political agenda meant to discredit church-affiliated pregnancy centers, which they say provide counseling and support services at no cost to the public and with little complaint from former clients.

"One has to question, in this economy where many of us are committed to seeing abortion reduced, why anyone would needle or harass faith-based charities that provide practical support and help to pregnant women," said Hansen, of Care Net.

The state funding for the centers comes from sales of the bright yellow "Choose Life" license plate, one of 225 specialty plates offered by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles. The state General Assembly approved the anti-abortion license plate during its legislative session last year.
-- [snip]--


Thankfully, the Virginia state legislature wasted little time rejecting this and other bills of this sort.


Virginia Legislature Defeats Pro-Abortion Bill Attacking Pregnancy Centers
by Steven Ertelt, LifeNews.Com Editor, Wed., Jan., 27, 2010.

Richmond, VA (LifeNews.com) -- The Virginia state legislature wasted little time rejecting bills sponsored by abortion advocates attacking pregnancy centers that provide pregnant women with help and support. The Virginia affiliate of NARAL designed the legislation to intimidate women who go to pregnancy centers for options counseling.

The bill, which followed a new ordinance the Baltimore city council approved to target pregnancy centers, sought to remove the funding stream available to pregnancy centers via the purchase of Choose Life license plates.

The bills (SB 188 and HB 452) would have required the centers to post signs saying they don't do abortions and that would have given women the impression the centers are not legitimate, professional or that they give inaccurate medical advice.

However, both the House and Senate versions of this legislation were killed in subcommittee late Tuesday.

"This was the best possible outcome we could have ever imagined," Family Foundation president Victoria Cobb told LifeNews.com.

Read more at LifeNews.Com . . .

[note: a pdf copy of the resolution as passed is available at
http://www.MarylandIndependentParty.org/for_discussion/MD-Montgomer...]

The following was published on the Montgomery County Council (Maryland) website, with source identified as the Office of Duchy Trachtenberg

ROCKVILLE, Md., February 2, 2010—The Montgomery County Council, acting as the County's Board of Health, today approved a regulation that requires all County pregnancy centers that do not have a licensed medical professional on staff to notify clients by posting at least one sign in their waiting room. The regulation, whose chief sponsor is Councilmember Duchy Trachtenberg (D-At Large), also requires the signs to say that the Montgomery County Health Officer encourages women who are or may be pregnant to consult with a licensed health car provider.

The original resolution applied only to Limited Service Pregnancy Resource Centers that do not refer their clients for abortion or comprehensive contraceptive services, which are also known as Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPCs). However, the regulation adopted today by a 7-2 vote was amended by the Council's Health and Human Services Committee to include all pregnancy centers in the County. In addition to Councilmember Trachtenberg, regulation co-sponsors Roger Berliner, Marc Elrich, Nancy Floreen, George Leventhal and Nancy Navarro, and Councilmember Valerie Ervin, voted in favor of the regulation. Councilmembers Phil Andrews and Mike Knapp voted against it.

Montgomery County is the first local jurisdiction in the nation to have such an action approved by its board of health. "Nothing is more important than the protection of the health and well-being of women in Montgomery County," said Councilmember Trachtenberg, who is a member of the Council's Health and Human Services Committee. "Requiring full disclosure of pregnancy centers is critical." The regulation approved today also amends the original regulation's enforcement provisions to:
* Remove the provision indicating that each day a violation of the regular exists is a separate offense
* Remove the provision allowing "any affected party" to file suit to enjoin repeated violations
* Require the County's Department of Health and Human Services to issue a written notice to a center violating the regulation before issuing a citation

The amended regulation applies to any pregnancy center that provides information about pregnancy-related services for a fee or as a free service.

Councilmember Trachtenberg said that the regulation is needed because some pregnancy centers often provide false and misleading information to women. She said that CPCs often tell clients that abortions make future pregnancy impossible; that abortions and oral contraceptives cause breast cancer; and that condoms are ineffective in preventing pregnancy and STDs. Overall, she said that CPCs often discourage women from seeking contraception or abortion.

A 2006 report by Congressman Henry Waxman of California entitled, "False and Misleading Health Information Provided by Federally Funded Pregnancy Resource Centers," stated that during an investigation of 23 CPCs that received federal grants, "20 of the 23 centers (87 percent) provided false or misleading information about the health effects of abortion."

Pregnancy resource centers received approximately $1 million through the Compassion Capital Fund, created in 2002 as a component of the Bush Administration's faith-based initiative, according to the report. The report also said that CPCs received more than $24 million in Community-Based Abstinence Education funds between 2001 and 2005, and at least $6 million from abstinence funding provided to states.

Among those who have said they supported the regulation are the Montgomery County Commission on Women, NARAL Pro-Choice Maryland, Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, the D.C. Abortion Fund (DCAF), Potomac Family Planning, NARAL Pro-Choice America, the National Abortion Federation and the National Institute for Reproductive Health. In addition, the measure is supported by Susan Wood, who is an associate professor of Health Policy and of Environmental and Occupational Health for the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services and the executive director of the Jacobs Institute of Women's Health, and Terry O'Neill, president of the National Organization for Women.