Gov. Shaprio’s defunding pregnancy help centers sacrifices women’s safety
Governor Josh Shapiro signed his first state budget last week and his administration announced that it will allow the long-standing contract with Real Alternatives to expire. The modest funding supported over 30 centers across the state to provide alternatives to abortion and pregnancy related services. In the wake of last year’s upset of Roe v Wade, the debate over abortion funding has grown more divisive and heated.
One area of common ground is the desire to protect women’s health and to protect those facing unexpected pregnancy. Pregnancy Help Centers across the state have been delivering services and resources for over 40 years as part of the health network in Pennsylvania that works to lower maternal and infant mortality, support and resource families, and fill the gaps in practical ongoing care for young families.
Limited choice
Centers across the Commonwealth have converted to a medical model and invested countless private dollars to increase medical services in rural and urban communities. The addition of ultrasound onsite at pregnancy centers affords women an earlier pregnancy diagnosis which in turn leads to earlier engagement in prenatal care. Ultrasound also allows for earlier detection of miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy or other urgent pregnancy complications.
Governor Shapiro has stated that “Pennsylvanians made clear by electing me as Governor that they support a woman’s freedom to choose, and I will be steadfast in defending that right.” By funding only one option, the state limits choice. Clearly this administration wants to unilaterally prioritize only one option for women: the ending of a pregnancy through abortion.
Everyone who values women’s health should pay attention to the recent funding decision as well as pending legislation that further separates pregnant women from the care they deserve. A decision that was once “between a woman and her doctor” is being replaced by the promotion of self-administered abortion using mifepristone or mifeprex (also known as the abortion pill).
Pennsylvania’s abortion leadership is shifting away from what was touted as the “safe, legal, and rare” surgical abortion procedures of the past, to this DIY method now called “medical abortion.” The abortion pill medical abortion, which now accounts for over 55% of the abortions in the state, is completed at home leaving a woman alone and with little access to pre and post abortion care.
A failure to provide
Mifepristone’s packaging instructions clearly advises women to consult an ultrasound to determine the gestational age of the baby before administering the drug, yet clinics, pharmacies, and online sales websites fail to provide this vital service.
By promoting medical abortion, big pharmaceutical companies are now cashing in while women are further separated from genuine health care. Promotion of these “self-managed” abortions and “pills by mail” ignore widely acknowledged health protections like medical screening, informed consent, and parental involvement for minors. Without an ultrasound, many women cannot confidently determine if they are within the number of weeks gestation to safely use these pills.
While chemical abortions are increasing, the number of reported complications from abortions are increasing in Pennsylvania as well. There were over 300 reported complications from abortion in 2021, a 34% increase from the previous year.
That is double the number of complications from just four years prior and the highest number of complications recorded in decades. In the absence of a doctor’s care, abortion pills are simply not safe. Nationally, Mifepristone has been associated with dozens of deaths and hundreds of life-threatening complications that we know of.
Expanding “abortion care” has been preferred over women’s health. Accessible “abortion care” without common sense safety measures is not care at all. This is the wrong direction for Pennsylvania.
Offering choice
There is never a need to sacrifice a woman’s health and safety. Local pregnancy help organizations exist to provide safe and confidential health care to those at risk for abortion before the decision and, if needed, after. Recently mischaracterized as “fake centers” and “pseudo-medical,” these locally operated pregnancy centers are directed by board certified physicians, staffed by RNs and certified ultrasound techs. There’s nothing fake about offering women and men free STD testing, free ultrasounds and meaningful support.
Pregnancy centers have a long history in my hometown of Pittsburgh and across the state as trusted confidential non-profits that provide resources and medical services to families touched by an unplanned pregnancy. Early ultrasound, nurse consultation, and accurate gestational dating by highly qualified staff intervene at the earliest days of a pregnancy.
Most women choose life. And for those who choose abortion, pregnancy centers offer post abortion assessment and care. All of these services are offered at no charge ever. These centers exist across the Commonwealth with access in nearly every county. Pregnancy Centers offer what all women deserve to have — a choice to access safe and free care.