On September 30, 2009, the Family Research Council released its report, A Passion to Serve, A Vision for Life, highlighting the contributions of pregnancy resource centers (PRCs) over the last 40 years. The release comes at an interesting time-the President is attempting to make abortion a recognized form of "health care," and we are seeing increasing attacks on PRCs each legislative session in the form of draconian legislation regulating the activities of PRCs and sometimes even attempting to force them to present information on abortion.
The report released today offers a great rebuttal to those efforts: real health care protects women. Real health care involves caring guidance to women in need, focusing on both her physical and psychological health.
In a press conference broadcast live over the internet, a panel of speakers-including physicians, clients served by PRCs, and the presidents of three national pregnancy center networks-discussed the impact of PRCs on women's, adolescent, maternal, and child health and how the movement's growth is driven by the public's desire to support abortion alternatives.
This desire is also demonstrated each legislative session. While we are seeing increasing bills targeting PRCs, those bills are far out-paced each year by bills providing funding and state support to abortion alternatives.
During the press conference, co-author of the report Chuck Donovan, Senior Research Fellow at Heritage Foundation, stated that abortions were reduced by tens of thousands last year through the work of PRCs, and that this work results in enormous healthcare savings.
Co-author Moira Gaul, Fellow and Director of Women's and Reproductive Health at FRC, added that these volunteer-run PRCs assist over 5,000 Americans on a daily basis, providing a "substantial public health benefit to our nation."
Ironically, as I drafted this blog entry, AUL received word that the Senate Finance Committee voted down important pro-life amendments that would have prevented the federal funding and coverage of abortion and protected the conscience rights of healthcare providers.
In AUL's press release, Dr. Charmaine Yoest, President of Americans United for Life, said that the defeat of these amendments illustrates the gap between rhetoric and reality on the Hill over abortion in health care reform:
"President Obama, Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid have all told the American people that abortion will not be in health care reform. Nevertheless, the defeat of these amendments demonstrates the gap between rhetoric and reality. These rhetorical assurances are not adding up to action. The pro-life community will continue a vigorous fight to keep abortion out of health care reform."
Obama's claim that he wants to reduce abortions is mere rhetoric. The amazing work of PRCs on a daily basis in truly reducing abortions is reality.
A Passion to Serve, A Vision for Life is available HERE. AUL will be posting an in-depth analysis of the report's findings.
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Americans United for Life (AUL) is a nonprofit, public-interest law and policy organization whose vision is a nation in which everyone is welcomed in life and protected in law. The first national pro-life organization in America, AUL has been committed to defending human life through vigorous judicial, legislative, and educational efforts state by state since 1971. The Wall Street Journal has profiled AUL, and our successful efforts in Mississippi have been chronicled on PBS' Frontline.
