Pregnancy centers in Montgomery County that don’t employ licensed medical professionals would have to post a sign saying so in their waiting rooms, according to new rules unanimously approved by a County Council committee Monday.
Centers without medically licensed staff also would have to post a notice that the county’s health officer “encourages women who may be pregnant to consult with a licensed health care provider.”
The proposed rules, which must be approved by the entire County Council, are in response to council members’ concerns that pregnant women “may be misled into believing” that some pregnancy centers are providing comprehensive medical services when they are not.
The new rules are an amended version of legislation proposed by Councilwoman Duchy Trachtenberg, D-at large, that specifically targeted pregnancy centers that don’t provide abortions or refer clients for abortions. Trachtenberg said she was worried that those centerswere providing false medical information about the consequences of having an abortion, such as linking them with breast cancer.
Trachtenberg changed her legislation to address concerns that her original bill was unconstitutional because it singled out centers that oppose abortion. The proposed rules apply to any center that deals primarily with pregnancy-related services.
“It is in the interest of women … that they have medically accurate information that is unbiased,” said Laura Meyers, chief executive officer of Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington.
But opponents of the bill see little improvement in the amended version and say the centers that oppose abortion are still being unfairly targeted by the bill.
“The final result is a bad bill that is less bad,” said Anthony Bosnick, the Catholic Archdiocese of Washington’s social ministry coordinator.
The archdiocese said the new legislation only appears to be “neutral” regarding a center’s stance on abortion, but in fact only applies to centers that oppose abortions. There are four such centers in the county, and only one of them employs licensed medical staff, according to council staff.
All pregnancy centers that perform abortions in the county have licensed medical staff, according to Meyers.
Bosnick said the county’s bill is part of a national campaign to undermine pregnancy centers that oppose abortions.
Baltimore recently passed similar legislation in November, reportedly becoming the first city in the country to pass such rules.
