HB1180 this sessions perennial update to the forced and coercive anti-choice counseling at so called “pregnancy help centers”, seeks to prohibit legitimate adoption agencies from registering as a crisis pregnancy center. If the laws proponents believe that women need more information available to them prior to seeking an abortion, then why are they taking away options to get that information?
The SD Campaign for Healthy Families supports women in their reproductive decisions, including those that choose adoption. We also support common sense efforts to reduce unintended pregnancies, and thus reduce the demand for abortion.
As one of the most restrictive states in the country for women’s health, abortion is already rare and heavily regulated in South Dakota. In fact, nationwide statistics that came out last week confirmed that SD has one of the lowest abortion rates in the country and accounts for only .06% of the abortions nationwide.
We believe that women have a right privacy in their medical decisions and to medically accurate information regarding their options. We have opposed the CPC law, and its variants since its introduction because there were neither standards in place to ensure the accuracy of information provided, nor safeguards to protect women’s privacy. In fact, portions of this law are currently enjoined.
We believe that women should be given all their legally available options. And in years past proponents have argued that women need more information and help making decisions. Yet, despite the legislature’s continued infringement on women’s privacy, HB1180 would seek to remove adoption agencies, (perhaps the ones most qualified to discuss their own services) as qualified pregnancy help center providers. It makes a bad law worse and we believe is counter to the purported intent of the original law and counter to the goal of providing women with all available options and information.