Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member and former Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, joined Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and U.S. Representative Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) in reintroducing the Stop Anti-Abortion Disinformation Act,= to crack down on so-called crisis pregnancy centers’ (CPCs) attempts to deceive and misinform women seeking reproductive health care.
CPCs routinely rely on deceptive advertising practices to trick pregnant women into thinking they offer comprehensive reproductive health care, only to discourage them from getting abortions. These deceptive tactics include making false claims about reproductive health care and lying about the risks of receiving an abortion or using certain forms of contraception. CPCs, which are generally not Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)-covered entities, have been found to falsely claim to be HIPAA-compliant in order to collect women’s sensitive health information and in some cases even disclose that data to law enforcement.
Nationwide, false advertising by CPCs is preventing women from getting the reproductive health care they need. The Stop Anti-Abortion Disinformation Act would direct the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to issue rules prohibiting disinformation in the advertising of abortion services. It would also give the Federal Trade Commission authority to enforce these rules and collect penalties from organizations, including CPCs, that violate these rules. The legislation was first introduced in the 117th Congress.
“So-called ‘crisis pregnancy centers,’ propped up by anti-choice extremists, are notorious for misleading women about the services they provide and lying to them about their options for evidence-based reproductive health care. CPCs have also been known to deliberately deceive women into thinking their private health information is protected when it’s not, since they aren’t bound by HIPAA like real health care providers,” said Senator Murray. “As Republican state legislatures continue to funnel taxpayer money to these unaccountable anti-abortion centers, it’s more important than ever that Congress cracks down on their deceptive practices–that’s what this legislation is about.”
“Fighting back against misinformation and deceptive practices is an important tool to protect access to safe and reliable reproductive care. Reproductive rights are under attack in our country. This bill will help us push back against crisis pregnancy centers’ attempts to undermine a woman’s right to choose,” said Senator Warren.
This bill will help stop crisis pregnancy centers from spreading deceptive advertising about abortion, and work to guarantee that everyone can get the accurate information and quality care they need and deserve. Planned Parenthood Action Fund is grateful to Sen. Warren and Reps. Bonamici and Sykes for re-introducing the Stop Anti-Abortion Disinformation Act and for their continued leadership in the fight to protect sexual and reproductive health care and rights. It’s time to end the manipulative tactics of these fake clinics so that all patients can control their own bodies, lives, and futures,” said Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO, Planned Parenthood Action Fund.
As a practicing OBGYN, I know firsthand how important it is that pregnant people have access to accurate information so that they can make important decisions about their care and lives without bias, stigma or shame,” said Dr. Raegan McDonald-Mosley, Power to Decide CEO and practicing OB-GYN. “We urge Congress to pass the ‘SAD Act’ so that every person has access to medically accurate information and the power to decide their reproductive futures.
In addition to Senators Murray and Warren, Senators Edward Markey (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Peter Welch (D-VT), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Catherine Cortez Masto, (D-NV), Richard Durbin, (D-IL), Mazie Hirono (D-HI) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) also cosponsored the legislation.
The text of the Stop Anti-Abortion Disinformation Act is available HERE.
Senator Murray is a longtime leader in the fight to protect and expand access to reproductive health care and abortion rights, and she has led Congressional efforts to fight back after the Supreme Court’s disastrous decision overturning Roe v. Wade. Murray has introduced more than a dozen pieces of legislation to protect reproductive rights from further attacks, protect providers, and help ensure women get the care they need; Murray has led efforts to push for passage of these bills on the floor multiple times. Last January, on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Murray led her colleagues in hosting a “State of Abortion Rights” briefing with women who have suffered firsthand from Republican abortion bans, and last June, she chaired a HELP Committee hearing titled “The Assault on Women’s Freedoms: How Abortion Bans Have Created a Health Care Nightmare Across America.” Recently, Murray helped lead efforts to force Republicans on the record on votes to protect access to contraception and access to IVF (twice), and she led her colleagues in raising the alarm about the threat a second Trump administration poses to reproductive rights and abortion access in every state, as outlined in Project 2025.
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