(Live Action) — A New York state Office of the Attorney General has sent a letter notifying pro-life pregnancy help centers in the state of the AG’s intent to sue them for alleged “misleading statements” regarding the so-called “abortion pill reversal” protocol.
The pregnancy centers were given five business days to respond.
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“Abortion pill reversal,” or APR, has a mechanism of action which works by supplementing the pregnant woman with the hormone progesterone to outcompete the effects of mifepristone (the first drug in the abortion pill regimen). Mifepristone (brand name Mifeprex) starves the preborn child of the nutrients it needs to survive by inhibiting the pregnancy-sustaining action of the woman’s naturally occurring progesterone.
Progesterone has been used safely in pregnant women for decades. Live Action News has previously reported on APR’s safety and efficacy and has published numerous stories of women who were able to save their children’s lives by following the APR protocol and also previously documented how the pro-abortion American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists (ACOG) and others within the abortion industry already know that progesterone can interfere with the action of the abortion pill.
False and deceptive advertising lawsuits
The New York state notice of litigation mimics a separate lawsuit previously filed by California Attorney General Rob Bonta against “Heartbeat International (HBI)” and “RealOptions Obria,” claiming the pro-life organizations “used fraudulent and misleading claims to advertise an unproven and largely experimental procedure called ‘abortion pill reversal (APR).’”
Live Action News previously reviewed the sources listed in Bonta’s complaint – and found that many of the allegations supporting the lawsuit came from sources with a prominent pro-abortion bias. Read more about the California case here.
CompassCare PRC speaks out
“On April 22, 2024, New York Attorney General Letitia James began a carbon-copy notice of litigation against Christian pro-life pregnancy centers. Ten pro-life pregnancy centers have been served so far for alleged ‘misleading statements or omissions in the advertising of the Abortion Pill Reversal (‘APR’) protocol,’” CompassCare CEO Jim Harden wrote in a press release sent to Live Action News.
Harden sent a copy of the notice showing it was signed by Eve Woodin, assistant attorney general Health Care Bureau, as well as Louisa Irving, assistant attorney general Civil Rights Bureau.
That letter from the New York state AG’s office stated, “[I]n light of CompassCare’s repeated and misleading statements and omissions in the advertising of the Abortion Pill Reversal (‘APR’) protocol, including, but not limited to, statements and omissions relating to the safety and efficacy of the APR protocol. The Attorney General intends to seek injunctive relief, restitution, damages, civil penalties, auditing and compliance review, costs, and other such relief as the court may deem just and proper.” See the full letter below:
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The New York state notice of litigation does not contain any specific examples or sources as to what was alleged to be “misleading.”
According to Harden, “The Albana County legislature was proposing a local law to restrict CompassCare’s free speech rights as well as other pregnancy centers keeping us from marketing [or] advertising to women.” Harden claimed that proposal was tabled after the PRC sent a letter from their attorneys earlier this week. Shortly thereafter, the certified notice of litigation was sent out, he claimed.
In the video message seen below, Harden reiterated that CompassCare provides free assistance to pregnant women and claimed that New York AG Letitia James is violating the center’s first amendment rights.
“First of all,” asserts Harden, “according to the First Amendment of the Constitution, pro-abortion government agents don’t get to decide what is true or false. But more importantly, if politicians like Letitia James get their way and hamstring pro-life groups and doctors, New York will be engaging in forced abortion. Women who start the chemical abortion process often change their mind after taking the first dose. In Letitia’s ideal world, if a woman starts an abortion the government will force her to go through with the abortion or travel out-of-state to save her baby.”
Harden also alleged that the New York state AG “has been actively attacking pro-life pregnancy centers since the illegal leak of the Dobbs case.”
“The attacks on pregnancy centers began on June 7, 2022, with the firebombing of CompassCare’s medical office in Buffalo, injuring two firefighters. Firebombing of pro-life groups is now deemed domestic terror by the DOJ. One week after the firebombing, NY Governor Kathy Hochul weaponized legislation by signing a bill to investigate the victims, alleging misinformation while referring to pro-life people as Neanderthals,” Harden wrote.
“Shortly after, New York Attorney General Letitia James conspired with big tech like Google to censure pro-life pregnancy centers, keeping women from finding them on map features. James applauded Google’s illegal compliance in August 2022. The timeline of attacks including vilification of pro-life pregnancy centers through negative PR and activist litigation can be found on CompassCare’s webpage.”
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The abortion industry, claimed Harden, is “violating medical ethics on a serial basis and harming women” – women whom Harden claims are “in desperate need of ethical medical care.”
According to Harden, “The powerhouse public interest law firm, Thomas More Society based in Chicago, is representing pro-life defendants in both cases, pro bono.”
Harden claims the New York state lawsuit threat is “wasting taxpayer money and keeping us from doing our job” to help women. “We will not stop serving women facing an unplanned pregnancy.”
Reprinted with permission from Live Action.