Aid for Women- empowering south suburban women with a real choice

Re: “Pro-Life Center Opens Next to Planned Parenthood in Flossmoor”(5/9/19)

When Planned Parenthood opened in Flossmoor in 2018, local residents formed the Southland Coalition for Life https://www.southlandcoalitionforlife.org/ to support women in unplanned pregnancies with the resources, love and truth that then offers them the opportunity to make life-affirming choices for themselves and their families. SCL chose to support Aid for Women to advance this goal with the opening of a pregnancy care center close to Planned Parenthood. The core of Aid for Women’s work is counseling and support, not the provision of abortion reversal pill. Aid for Women client advocates help mothers define their own goals and then help organize the practical support that enables women to keep their babies, or place them for adoption, while still pursuing their dreams.

Given the Patch article’s focus on abortion pill reversal we would like to address this issue directly. The article states that “Aid For Women claims to offer ‘abortion pill reversal’ which ‘does not exist’”. We agree that there is not yet an accepted medical study affirming the efficacy of the abortion pill reversal treatment, yet we know that hundreds of women have confirmed that the treatment has worked for them. Aid for Women shares with clients who inquire about it that this treatment is an option that may or may not work. There is no deception. Like other medications that are FDA approved, doctors are permitted to prescribe “off-label” uses for medication not yet studied by the FDA as part of their practice of medicine. A study is now being conducted, and initial results will likely be known within one year. Readers may be interested in reading a balanced overview of this issue as presented by NPRhttps://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2019/03/22/688783130/controversial-abortion-reversal-regimen-is-put-to-the-test

Further, the article quotes the American Medical Association Journal of Ethics as saying that pregnancy care centers are unethical and that “their propagation of misinformation should be regarded as an ethical violation that undermines women’s health.” We can’t speak for every pregnancy care center across the country, but we can speak for Aid for Women and this is simply not true. Aid for Women shares factual information about all of a woman’s options- including abortion. With respect to abortion, Aid for Women is upfront with clients that it does not perform abortions, does not recommend abortion, and also shares factual information about the different types of abortion, what happens in abortion, and the physical and emotional risks. Those who don’t think there are risks to having an abortion need to look no further than the 911 call placed from the Flossmoor Planned Parenthood in December 2018, which was obtained from a FOIA request: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIYNwvO6Vrk.

Readers may find it odd that Planned Parenthood claims to be focused on women’s health yet not one Planned Parenthood abortion clinic in the State of Illinois has received a health and sanitary inspection in 16 years, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health and no Planned Parenthood facility is licensed by the State of Illinois, because it is not required. Interestingly, other abortion providers in Illinois have been more recently inspected such as Access Health Center in Downers Grove. If Planned Parenthood were truly concerned about women’s health, wouldn’t they agree that being regularly inspected for sanitation is good medical practice for women’s health?

The criticism in the article that Aid for Women locating next to Planned Parenthood “intimidates” women from entering Planned Parenthood is not valid. Residents of our community can drive by the Flossmoor Aid for Women and ask themselves if the center is “intimidating”.

Aid for Women chose to be close to Planned Parenthood to offer women a true choice. Planned Parenthood shouldn’t be afraid of empowering women with choices.

Having both Aid for Women and Planned Parenthood in Flossmoor offers women in the south suburbs a full range of options. Outside of both offering pregnancy tests, there is likely very little overlap in the two organizations’ range of services offered. Plus, their missions are different: Aid for Women’s core mission is to empower women facing unplanned and crisis pregnancies with practical and emotional support so that they have a viable option of choosing life for their baby while still being able to pursue their dreams. Planned Parenthood’s mission articulated recently by its president Dr. Leana Wen on Twitter is “Our core mission is providing, protecting and expanding access to abortion and reproductive health care.”

https://twitter.com/drleanawen/status/1082660986513960966?lang=en

We will let the president of Planned Parenthood’s statement speak for itself. Readers can decide whether it’s good that women are offered the services and choice that Aid for Women provides.

Kris and Dennis Cortes

Stefanie and Steve Mullin

Southland Coalition for Life