Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Common ground on supporting pregnant women

Thomas J. Reese makes some good points in this post, Authentic Common Ground on Abortion. As a pro-choicer, I do have one little quibble, though. He says that everyone, pro-choice and pro-life, should be able to support the Pregnant Women Support Act, which contains provisions...

Eliminating pregnancy as a "preexisting condition" that can be used to deny health coverage for women; grants to support centers providing alternatives to abortion; assistance encouraging colleges and universities to provide support for pregnant and parenting students; increased support for the WIC program, and for adoption programs; allowing states to cover unborn children and their mothers under the Children's Health Insurance Program, providing prenatal care for especially needy pregnant women who may not otherwise be eligible; and improving services for pregnant women who are at risk from domestic violence.
That all sounds fine to me, except for "grants to support centers providing alternatives to abortion." I don't think the federal government should be funding anti-choice pregnancy centers that exist only to spread lies about birth control and abortion, and berate women in to carrying to term. Women going to legitimate, government-funded establishments should be able to expect scientifically accurate information and non-judgmental counseling and services. Unless they can guarantee that, I can't support taxpayer funding going to these places.

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