IdeaLog
Stop UPC false advertising
Posted on November 26, 2025
The main objective of unregulated pregnancy clinics (UPCs) is to prevent clients, either by persuasion or delay, from having an abortion. In furtherance of this mission, UPCs present themselves falsely as conventional “free clinics” to lure in people who believe they need medical care for a pregnancy.
About 75 percent of UPCs offer “limited ultrasound” examinations, which means they are conducting a medical examination but in an extremely narrow manner. Clients believe they are visiting a clinic which diagnoses and treats medical disorders, but that is not the case at a UPC. Their ultrasounds are little more than showing pictures of the womb in the hope that, once seen, clients will bond with the fetus and not seek an abortion.
These “medicalized” UPCs certainly look like conventional clinics, with a waiting room, an examining room, and medical equipment. There are even mobile UPCs designed to look like conventional medical facilities. As ICU Mobile, “A Ministry Division of Care Net,” concedes: “ICU Mobile units are neutrally-branded and medically designed. By having this independent brand, we break down the barriers that may prevent abortion-minded women from coming on board…” Another set of mobile UPC trucks, from Save the Storks, have painted on the sides: “Women’s Choice Center,” “Pregnancy Testing & Ultrasound,” and “mobile medical unit.”
Clients seeking pregnancy services need honest and nonjudgmental medical services. The American Medical Association “advocates that any entity offering crisis pregnancy services…truthfully describe the services they offer or for which they refer—including prenatal care, family planning, termination, or adoption services—in communications on site and in their advertising, and before any services are provided to an individual patient.” They are right.
Many legislative efforts to address fraudulent advertising by UPCs have failed because of the way they were written. The UPC Playbook legislation is different, however, because it is not limited to UPCs; it applies to false advertising by any health care services entity. That makes the legislation defensible in court, which is why Vermont amended its law in 2025 to this version. While it may seem like a significant change in scope, states already have laws against fraudulent advertising that apply to enterprises that charge for their products or services, including health care providers. So, the real effect of this model is limited, extending false advertising prohibitions to include free health care entities, such as UPCs.
How do UPCs actually spend state money?
Posted on November 13, 2025
Nineteen states directly fund unregulated pregnancy clinics (UPCs). Four others funded them until recently. Where does the money go? What is it used for? Is it an efficient use of state funds? These states...
States need to address UPCs’ lack of ethics
Posted on October 27, 2025
State boards of medicine and nursing are ignoring ethical violations by doctors and nurses who are associated with UPCs. Essentially, these licensed professionals are helping UPCs impersonate medical clinics, which is defrauding clients. Anyone...
Regulate UPCs that pretend to be free medical clinics
Posted on October 14, 2025
There are dozens of nonprofit free medical clinics in every state, which provide quality health care to people who can’t afford it. There are also dozens of Unregulated Pregnancy Clinics (UPCs), which are masquerading...
Require UPCs to disclose their spending
Posted on October 1, 2025
Nineteen states currently subsidize Unregulated Pregnancy Clinics (UPCs, often called crisis pregnancy centers) and yet, they need no subsidies. They are already spending far more than they provide clients in goods and services. How...
Stop UPCs from disclosing sensitive client health information
Posted on September 17, 2025
When clients go to any healthcare facility, they expect their sensitive personal health information to be kept confidential. But Unregulated Pregnancy Clinics (otherwise called Crisis Pregnancy Centers) often send personal health information to a...
Why focus on UPCs?
Posted on September 3, 2025
There is a vast network of Unregulated Pregnancy Clinics (UPCs), commonly called “crisis pregnancy centers,” which falsely present themselves as full-service reproductive health clinics. While their main mission is to prevent abortion, they play...
Sleepwalking into a police state
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Recent statistics destroy conservative arguments about crime
Posted on July 23, 2025
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Robinson’s rules for campaign staffers
Posted on July 9, 2025
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