Browse > Home / City of Los Angeles, County of Los Angeles, East Los Angeles (LA City), East Los Angeles (Unincorp.), Eastern Group Publications/EGPNews, Eastside Sun, Health & Lifestyle, Northeast Sun / Pregnancy Clinics Warned towards Follow ‘Choice’ Law
Pregnancy Clinics Warned towards Follow ‘Choice’ Law
By Elizabeth Hsing-Huei Chou, City News Service
Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer said Monday he has actually taken actions towards enforce a Brand-new state law that needs pregnancy centers and clinics towards give clients along with referrals towards low-cost or free abortion, contraception and family preparation services, and he sent letters towards 6 facilities towards remind them towards comply.
AB 775, which went in to effect in January, needs that “there be accurate, clear post offered by these so-called crisis pregnancy centers,” Feuer said.
“We’re going towards relocate forward towards enforce the law,” Feuer said, despite the fact that some jurisdictions in California are holding off on enforcement until legal challenges from anti-abortion teams are resolved.
Feuer noted that “so far no court has actually agreed towards suspend implementation of this law.”
“Waiting for a day, or a week, or a month towards enforce this law threatens the Healthiness and safety of women who, throughout that time period, could not be informed of their choices,” Feuer said.
Matt Bowman, an attorney along with Alliance Defending Freedom — which represents the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates, or NIFLA — said AB 775 violates the Initial Amendment rights of pregnancy centers.
“Requiring pro-life pregnancy Healthiness centers towards refer women for free abortions is a blatant violation of their free speech rights,” Bowman said.
A federal appeals court is set towards hear the alliance’s challenge on June 14, Bowman said.
Attorneys for Humboldt County and the cities of Grass Valley and Eureka have actually agreed not towards enforce the law while legal challenges are pending, according towards court papers offered by Bowman.
Feuer said Monday he sent compliance notices towards 6 pregnancy centers — two of which are unlicensed as medical facilities — towards inform them of the law’s requirements. He noted, however, he had no evidence that any sort of of them have actually been violating the law.
“They are varying entities that are obligated under the statutes of the law towards comply along with the law,” he said. “Whether they are or not remains towards be seen.”
Feuer said he will certainly send out much more letters once he identifies added centers in the city subject towards the law.
The county Department of Company Consumer Affairs will certainly follow-up on the notices along with “investigations towards make certain the laws are being effectuated by these crisis pregnancy centers,” Feuer said.
Under the state law, centers that supply counseling regarding pregnancy choices or various other pregnancy-related services are called for towards information post regarding exactly how towards access a range of programs, including abortion and contraception, or give clients along with the post theoretically or digitally.
Facilities that are unlicensed need to additionally disclose that they are not licensed as medical providers. The Initial offense of the law carries a $500 fine, while added violations each have actually a $1,000 penalty.
Feuer’s office sent the notices to:
— Avenues Pregnancy Clinic, 862 N. Vermont Ave.;
— Los Angeles Pregnancy Services, 2524 W. Seventh St.;
— Claris Healthiness Pregnancy Clinic, 11500 W. Olympic Blvd., Suite 570;
— Pregnancy Counseling Center, 10211 Sepulveda Blvd.;
— Open Arms Pregnancy Clinic, 9535 Reseda Blvd., Suite 303; and
— Harbor Pregnancy Tips Center, 705 W. Pacific Coast Highway.
Several of the centers referred CNS towards Bowman and various other attorneys for NIFLA, which is a plaintiff in one of the lawsuits challenging the law.
Dan Steiner, executive director of Avenues Pregnancy Clinic, told CNS his facility has actually “constantly complied along with the law” and that “every woman we’ve talked to, we’ve talked regarding abortion.”
Fawn Kemble, the client services director for the Claris Healthiness Pregnancy Clinic in West Los Angeles, said the facility has actually been “in compliance because January” and has actually been providing pregnancy option post towards clients along with a paper handout. Claris CEO Talitha Phillips said that prior to
the law going in to effect, the clinic was already providing post regarding abortion services, “anytime a woman desires post regarding options,” and the clinic is not among the teams challenging AB 775.
Feuer’s statements today were applauded by NARAL Pro-Choice California, which sponsored AB 775 with each other along with Attorney General Kamala Harris and the group Black Women for Wellness.
“Today, the city and county of Los Angeles took a stand versus anti-choice bullies that are using the courts towards interfere along with women’s reproductive Healthiness choices,” the group’s state director, Amy Everitt, said. “various other cities and counties need to follow their lead and send a clear message that our
commitment towards women’s Healthiness won’t be compromised.”
City Councilwoman Nury Martinez, that represents a San Fernando Valley district, said she received a complaint last year from a constituent that a pregnancy focus — one of the 6 that received notices from Feuer — failed towards supply post regarding abortion services.
“She went in for the full range of services and this particular option towards terminate her pregnancy was not offered towards her, and she ended up carrying towards full term,” Martinez said.
Martinez said she recently introduced a motion addressing pregnancy centers that steer clients away from abortion. She described these centers as “frequently deceptive” and “detrimental towards women as quickly as they are most vulnerable.”
“They make women believe that they are medical clinics or that they supply choices for women that are pregnant, and they truly don’t,” she said.
“In fact, in numerous of these centers … they sustain post from women that are thinking regarding terminating their pregnancy, or they’ll stress a woman in to making a personal decision regarding her pregnancy which could not be the very best option for her or her personal circumstances.”
Posted by admin · Filed Under City of Los Angeles, County of Los Angeles, East Los Angeles (LA City), East Los Angeles (Unincorp.), Eastern Group Publications/EGPNews, Eastside Sun, Health & Lifestyle, Northeast Sun
May 26, 2016 Copyright © 2012 Eastern Group Publications, Inc.
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