Media Release: October 30, 2024
False labels and mischaracterizations don’t help women: Response to the Government of Canada
The Liberal Government announced on Tuesday, October 29, 2024, proposed legislative changes “to require more transparency” from charities providing pregnancy care services.[1]
“Specifically, registered charities whose purpose or one of their main activities is to provide pregnancy and reproductive health supports and services, including pregnancy options counselling, would be required to explicitly disclose if they do not provide abortions, birth control, or referrals to these services. Organizations that do not clearly and prominently provide the required transparency risk losing charitable status.”[2] (Emphasis added.)
We respectfully ask Prime Minister Trudeau and Ministers Freeland and Ien to stop using false labels and mischaracterizations of the good work done daily across Canada at local pregnancy care centres and online. Their words impede the access, freedom, and choice of the very women they claim to protect. Canadian women deserve better, and Canadians expect more from their leaders than to see charities used as a pre-election political wedge.
Although we have ideological differences, Pregnancy Care Canada (PCC) agrees that medically accurate information and transparency of services are important.
Pregnancy Care Canada is a national, best-practice, faith-based affiliation of 80 local pregnancy care centres and online support. From our perspective, the government is manufacturing an issue that doesn’t exist to divide and mislead Canadians. The disclosure requirements outlined in their backgrounder “Protecting reproductive freedom by preventing abuse of charitable status”[3] are already part of our recommended best practices, and have been for years.
All PCC-affiliated centres agree annually to our Commitment of Care and Competence. PCC-affiliated centres offer a safe environment for a woman to make a pregnancy decision that is fully informed, evidence-based, and free from external pressure. Centres respect a woman’s right to make her own decision and provide her with medically accurate information on all three options: abortion, adoption, and parenting.
Before receiving services at a PCC-affiliated pregnancy care centre, every client reads a Limitation of Services form, which clearly indicates that the centre does not provide or assist in arranging abortions. In addition, every centre affiliated with PCC must provide a disclaimer on their website, which states that the centre does not provide or assist in arranging abortions.
If a client chooses to pursue an abortion, a PCC-affiliated centre will not mislead or obstruct this decision. If a client requests help in obtaining an abortion, she is advised to consult the appropriate professional. She is also encouraged to return for post-abortion support if desired.
Clients are referred to their primary care physician if their needs are outside the centre’s scope of care. This includes requests for medication or birth control.
For accuracy and accountability, Pregnancy Care Canada’s Pregnancy Options Guide, the primary resource for pregnancy options discussions with clients, has been reviewed by 80 specialized practitioners in Canada, including perinatal nurses, family physicians, obstetrician-gynaecologists, medical ethicists, psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers.
Who is helped at pregnancy care centres? In 2023,
- 48,855 women and men of diverse faiths and religions accessed help at PCC-affiliated pregnancy care centres.
- 7,980 clients received material supplies, such as diapers, formula, and clothing.
- 1,484 clients were supported through parenting programs.
- 418 women requested and received support after their abortion.
All of these services were voluntarily requested and provided free of charge.
Regardless of one’s ideological views, local pregnancy care centres must not be overlooked for their charitable value and support of thousands of individuals every year.
For a woman to truly have reproductive freedom and choice regarding her unexpected pregnancy, she must have authentic options to choose from – including the option to continue her pregnancy, receive support, and not feel pressured into an unwanted abortion.
On behalf of Pregnancy Care Canada,
Laura Lewis MD, CCFP
Executive Director
Since 2016, Dr. Lewis has been the Executive Director of Pregnancy Care Canada. After working as a family physician for 22 years, she saw the need for education, support, and practical options for women and men facing unexpected pregnancies. Dr. Lewis has an HonsBComm from Queen’s University, a Medical Degree from the University of Western Ontario, and a certificate of Family Medicine from McMaster University.
[1] This action was introduced in Parliament by the Hon. Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, and the Hon. Marci Ien, Minister of Women and Gender Equality and Youth.
[2] Protecting reproductive freedom by preventing abuse of charitable status, Canada.ca, https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/news/2024/10/protecting-reproductive-freedom-by-preventing-abuse-of-charitable-status.html