NARAL Pro-Choice Texas Applauds Signing of the Limited-Service Pregnancy Centers Disclosure Ordinance
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 8, 2010 Media Contact: Blake Rocap, 512-587-7653 NARAL Pro-Choice Texas Applauds Signing of the Limited-Service Pregnancy Centers Disclosure Ordinance Commonsense provision will require limited service pregnancy centers to disclose the limitations of their services AUSTIN, TX - Sara S. Cleveland, Executive Director of NARAL Pro-Choice Texas, praised Mayor Lee Leffingwell for signing the Limited-Service Pregnancy Centers Disclosure Ordinance into Austin law today. Introduced by Austin City Council Member Bill Spelman and co-sponsored by Mayor Pro Tem Mike Martinez and Council Member Laura Morrison, this law is a common-sense measure that will ensure women visiting a limited service pregnancy center in Austin are informed that they will not receive comprehensive birth control or abortion services or referrals. Austin is the second city in the United States, after Baltimore, MD, to introduce an ordinance regulating limited service pregnancy centers and the first government in Texas to pass such a law. Limited service pregnancy centers, also known as crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) neither provide nor refer for abortion or birth control. “We thank Council Member Spelman for championing an issue so important to women's health. This law will ensure truth in advertising, protecting consumers. Unfortunately, CPCs in Austin are not always up front about their services and frequently give women misinformation,” stated Cleveland. NARAL Pro-Choice Texas investigated three centers in Austin, all of which provided misinformation about abortion or birth control and none of which would provide a referral, even for birth control. “This law will empower women by giving them full information up front about what to expect from a limited service pregnancy center. This provision does not ask a facility to provide any services they find objectionable, but only asks them to tell the truth about the nature of their services. We applaud Mayor Leffingwell for signing this important ordinance,” continued Cleveland. A broad coalition of health care providers and women's groups supported this measure and NARAL Pro-Choice Texas looks forward to replicating this in other cities across Texas. Cleveland explains how many people contributed to this victory. “We couldn’t have done this without the Austin City Council Members and their hard-working staff, the many people who registered their support at City Hall and made calls and emails, our coalition partners, and especially the National Institute of Reproductive Health located in New York, which through a grant helped to make this possible.” # # #
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