LA City Attorney Targets Anti-Abortion Centers That Falsely Advertise Services

A proposed law targets anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers that allegedly advertise abortion care, emergency contraception, and prenatal services but do not actually provide them.

In a press conference, Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer said that when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe V. Wade, it “took away a fundamental right, and cast women into great peril.”

“Here in Los Angeles, we need to be an antidote to that,” added Feuer. “And that includes assuring that women who come here and women who are here already have access to accurate and complete information when it comes to their reproductive choices.”

He said that pregnancy centers that mislead people can delay and sometimes deny access to reproductive services.

“They could lose time at a moment when emergency contraception could make a difference, they might have to otherwise undergo much more severe treatment, and they might lose choices that they otherwise have.”

When asked by reporters, Feuer said he estimates at least five anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers are operating in the city but would not state if any of them are misleading patients.

The proposed law, which has been submitted to the L.A. City Council for consideration, strengthens fines for false advertising from $2,500 to $10,000 for each offense.

And it takes a page from the book of Texas lawmakers who passed legislation allowing individuals to sue abortion providers — a law Governor Gavin Newsom has mirrored to allow suits against gun manufacturers in California.

Pregnant people were previously protected by a state law that required all anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers to post if they didn’t actually provide abortion services. The U.S. Supreme Court overturned the California law in 2018.