Supreme Court must agree with California and end lies spread by fake women’s health centers

Any woman will tell you decisions about pregnancy are time sensitive, so it’s critical that women and their families get timely and accurate information. A few years ago, we found in California that many women were not aware of the programs and financial support the state offers.

Even worse, we learned that there were hundreds of fake women’s health centers in California purporting to offer pregnancy related health care and medical services, when in fact they were preying on women at a vulnerable time in their lives.

There are thousands more of these centers across the country, far outnumbering actual medical facilities that offer women information about the full range of health care options, including abortion.

{mosads}Now, women in California and across the country are calling on the Supreme Court to end the lies. Today, the court will hear oral arguments in NIFLA v. Becerra on a commonsense law that addresses this deception.

California passed the FACT Act to end the lies and provide women with full and accurate information about their reproductive health care options. With this law, California is again leading the way and arguing that women need real health care, not fake women’s health centers.

Fake women’s health centers use deceptive advertising to lure women into their centers and have a well-documented history of intentionally misleading women into believing they are real health care facilities. For many women, the internet is the first place we turn for information, particularly when we’re afraid.

Fake women’s health centers know this, and use geo-targeting and search optimization to target women looking for pregnancy-related health care or information about abortion. And their websites deceptively cast themselves as comprehensive health care clinics. That’s how even women who do their research can wind up in a fake women’s health center.

After luring women into their facilities, these centers often lie about medical facts. They knowingly and incorrectly claim abortion poses risks such as infertility, breast cancer, and birth defects in future pregnancies. Some tell women that they may not need an abortion because one in four pregnancies ends in miscarriage, suggesting they wait it out.

According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, these claims are medically inaccurate and deliberately misleading. Even the “licensed” facilities provide minimal medical care — just pregnancy tests and unnecessary and invasive ultrasounds that are used to manipulate women.

In 2015, we were proud to work with a coalition of more than 48 women’s health and reproductive justice organizations, in addition to state legislators and then-Attorney General Kamala Harris, to pass the Reproductive FACT Act in California. This is a straightforward law that helps provide important, accurate, and comprehensive information to pregnant women and their families.

Think about it this way: states require licenses and posted notices for many businesses, from auto repair shops to nail salons. It is only reasonable for the state to also require accurate information to be posted by facilities that advertise they provide something as important as pregnancy-related health care services. These are common sense rules that protect everyone.

Fake women’s health centers cannot be allowed to deceive women, lie about medical facts, and delay access to comprehensive reproductive or prenatal care. That’s why we fought to pass the FACT Act, and California again led the nation in improving access to women’s health care.

This week, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on this law. It’s critical that it rules with women and their families in California and across the country who want to end the lies and provide women with comprehensive, accurate information on their pregnancy-related decisions.

Amy Everitt is the state director for NARAL Pro-Choice California.