Preying With Pseudoscience: Crisis Pregnancy Centers’ New, Dangerous Rhetoric

The term crisis pregnancy center (CPC) refers to anti-abortion facilities that mislead, confuse, delay, misinform, and purposefully re-direct pregnant people looking for education and services, including abortion care. They are often referred to as fake clinics, but they are beginning to offer some medical services. Garnet Henderson and Susan Rinkunas, journalists and co-founders of Autonomy News, sit down to talk with us about the new, harmful deceptions that CPCs are rolling out nationwide.

CPCs claim, without good evidence, an in-progress abortion can be halted through an “abortion pill reversal,” or the placement of progesterone between the ingestion of mifepristone and misoprostol—the two medications needed a medication abortion. This is based off myths of anecdotal regret, not scientific studies. In fact, the medical consensus is clear: the "abortion pill reversal" pseudoscience is ineffective and potentially dangerous. A case this Supreme Court term, First Choice Women's Resource Centers v. Platkin, stemmed from a subpoena from New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin to the First Choice chain of CPCs, seeking evidence on their abortion pill reversal claims. They have fought the subpoena up to the Supreme Court. 

Meanwhile, the "One Big Beautiful Bill" has cut Planned Parenthood out of Medicaid. Abortion providers are forced to make a choice: continue providing abortions and remain ineligible to participate in Medicaid, or halt abortion services. There is no early gestation ban on abortion in Wisconsin, but Planned Parenthood has chosen not to provide abortions in response to this law. 

LINKS FROM THIS EPISODE

Autonomy News
Autonomy News on Instagram
Autonomy News on Bluesky
Abortion Pill “Reversal” Is a Hoax. It's Also a Powerful Right-Wing Legal Strategy.
Here’s Which Planned Parenthood Clinics Are Still Seeing Medicaid Patients
How Abortion Pill “Reversal” Became a Powerful Right-Wing Legal Weapon
More information on First Choice Women's Resource Centers, Inc. v. Platkin
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Transcript

Jennie: Welcome to rePROs Fight Back, a podcast on all things related to sexual and reproductive health, rights, and justice. [music intro]

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