For more than 50 years, pro-life pregnancy centers across America have provided a lifeline to women and families in need. Now, the latest affirmation of their tremendous contribution to society has arrived.
A new report from the pro-life Charlotte Lozier Institute, titled “Pregnancy Centers Stand the Test of Time,” reveals that 2,700 pro-life pregnancy centers nationwide served almost two million people in 2019, at an estimated value of nearly $270 million.
The scope of the vital services offered is rich and varied. It includes almost 732,000 free pregnancy tests, nearly half a million free ultrasounds, and more than 160,000 STI/STD tests. It encompasses parenting and sexual risk avoidance classes, as well as after-abortion recovery support. It also includes material goods such as more than 1 million packs of diapers and 2 million baby outfits.
Unlike at abortion centers, these services are typically provided at virtually no charge. And while Planned Parenthood rakes in more than half a billion dollars a year from taxpayers, most pregnancy centers receive not a dime of public funding.
There’s plenty of fascinating data inside this report. As in past years, though, a wealth of history and moving personal testimonies also bring its pages to life.
Amber, a client in North Carolina, said, “The amount of love and support that we received from the staff was incredible. We didn’t feel judged or ridiculed … Once we saw our baby’s heartbeat for the first time, we knew that there was no way that we could terminate the pregnancy. We left our initial appointment with the confidence that we could do this.”
Alison in Maine said, “I was truly amazed and overwhelmed by the amount of support I was given … I’m not sure I could ever express how much that means to me. I will never forget getting an ultrasound there and seeing my son at just eight weeks development. They let me keep the pictures, which I was able to share with my boyfriend. We both fell in love with our son instantly.”
These stories speak to the power of the sonogram to give expecting parents a window into the womb. The first pregnancy center to offer this exciting new technology opened in Orange, California, 35 years ago. From the start, medical professionals have been leaders in the pregnancy-help movement, including pioneering women physicians. In 2019, nearly 3,800 licensed medical staff devoted their expertise, and 6,400 medical volunteers gave selflessly of their time to ensure that women and men have access to compassionate, quality care.
Not only that, a growing number of centers are equipped to serve women seeking abortion pill reversal. With chemical abortion on the rise, endangering women, and threatening to reverse decades of progress, this is critical. The abortion pill is sold to women as “convenience,” but in reality, it is conveniently aligned with the abortion industry’s bottom line. Many women will never set foot inside a brick-and-mortar abortion facility or be examined by a doctor. They are instead left to ingest deadly drugs to kill their babies, then fend for themselves should they experience potentially life-threatening and life-altering complications.
Sarah in Iowa recounts how, under pressure from her baby’s father, she walked into Planned Parenthood and was sold the abortion pill. Filled with regret after taking the first of the two drugs, she found information about abortion pill reversal online. Within a short time, she connected with the Abortion Pill Rescue Network. A doctor was able to administer life-sustaining progesterone, and Sarah’s little boy lived — one of more than 1,000 babies saved in this manner as of 2019.
No wonder an overwhelming majority of people, regardless of whether they self-identify as “pro-life” or “pro-choice,” consider pregnancy centers a valuable community resource. It’s hard to imagine how anyone would oppose their beautiful mission. But the profit-driven abortion industry and its political allies fight them tooth and nail, smearing them as “fake clinics,” even after pro-life centers won a landmark victory at the Supreme Court. We are so thankful to have leaders such as President Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, who recently became the first sitting vice president in history to visit a pregnancy center, continually fighting on the side of life.
Pregnancy centers are the beating heart of the pro-life movement. Their persistence is some of the strongest evidence that life is winning in America. In a world that too often seems hopelessly divided, they have the power to unite us and help us all envision a future when abortion is not just illegal but unthinkable. They deserve to be celebrated and supported, and under this administration, they always will be.
Charles A. “Chuck” Donovan is the president of the Charlotte Lozier Institute, the research arm of Susan B. Anthony List. Marjorie Dannenfelser is president of the national pro-life group Susan B. Anthony List and the author of “Life is Winning: Inside the Fight for Unborn Children and Their Mothers.“
