Inefficiency and Ideology Within the Florida Pregnancy Support Services Program is Wasting Millions in Taxpayer Dollars
This report outlines the development of Florida Pregnancy Support Services Program alongside the history of funding for family planning services in Florida and explores Florida Pregnancy Care Network’s (FPCN) history, staff, and board members. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, abortions have decreased in Florida since 2009.[1] Despite this, Florida funnels millions in taxpayer dollars to anti-abortion pregnancy centers that do not provide medical services. Instead, these centers promote inaccurate medical information and religious content on the taxpayer’s dime. These same, highly reimbursed services are not subject to thorough oversight by the state.
When then-Governor Jeb Bush signed an executive order authorizing the creation of the Florida Pregnancy Support Services Program, he solidified funding for a program anti-abortion advocates had pursued for years: government monies for anti-abortion pregnancy centers. Florida is now one of fourteen states funding anti-abortion pregnancy centers with taxpayer dollars. Anti-abortion pregnancy centers can go by different names, including crisis pregnancy centers, pregnancy resource centers, life-conscious pregnancy centers, and fake clinics.
Since 2009, the Florida Legislature has allocated more than $30 million to FPCN to manage the services with a goal of “solely promot[ing] childbirth.”[2] As state funding increased to the program, the Florida Department of Health has relaxed related reporting requirements.[3] While Florida generously funds Florida Pregnancy Support Services Program, it does not fund comprehensive family planning services through this program. State funding for the program includes legislative allocations from a trust allocated for rape crisis centers in Florida, but subcontractors do not advertise providing crisis rape services.
Most service providers attached to this program are anti-abortion pregnancy centers, which advertise providing options and reproductive health services. Of the 56 subcontractors, only 2 provide health and wellness services. Fifty-six subcontractors administer these services, which include “counseling” and pregnancy tests. Emphasis is placed on providing counseling that promotes childbirth or postpartum counseling with only two subcontractors contractually obligated to provide health and wellness services.
Contrary to the mandate prohibiting religious bias in the delivery of services, many of the subcontractors affiliated with this program are religious entities. They require volunteers – which can make up the majority of the center’s workforce – to submit statements of Christian faith, even requiring referrals from a pastor of their church, prior to volunteering with the center. Many subcontractors promote dangerous medical misinformation on their websites, including the scientifically unsound “abortion pill reversal” method. This, despite a 2019 study of “abortion pill reversal” being halted after participants experienced extreme vaginal bleeding.
FPCN, a Tallahassee-based anti-abortion organization, has managed the program since its inception. This network’s executive director and board members use hate speech and promote themes of prejudice and discrimination on their social media accounts. Many are affiliated with conservative and right-wing religious entities.
Until taxpayers can be assured that these centers conform to ethical standards of licensed medical facilities, offer sound medical advice, and do not lead to harm, the state of Florida should refrain from directly or indirectly funding anti-abortion pregnancy centers.
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[1] See Figure 1. Karen Pazol, Andreea A. Creagna, Suzanne B. Zane, Kim D. Burley, and Denise J. Jamieson, Abortion Surveillance – United States, 2009, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Nov. 23, 2012), available at https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss6108a1.htm?s_cid=ss6108a1_w; Karen Pazol, Andreea A. Creagna, Kim D. Burley, Brenda Hayes, and Denise J. Jamieson, Abortion Surveillance – United States, 2010, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Nov. 29, 2013), available at https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss6208a1.htm?s_cid=ss6208a1_w; Karen Pazol, Andreea A. Creagna, Kim D. Burley, and Denise J. Jamieson, Abortion Surveillance – United States, 2011, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Nov. 28, 2014), available at https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss6311a1.htm?s_cid=ss6311a1_w; Karen Pazol, Andreea A. Creagna, and Denise J. Jamieson, Abortion Surveillance – United States, 2012, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Nov. 27, 2015), available at https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss6410a1.htm?s_cid=ss6410a1_e; Tara C. Jatlaoui, Alexander Ewing, Michele G. Mandel, Katharine B. Simmons, Danielle B. Suchdev, Denise J. Jamieson, and Karen Pazol, Abortion Surveillance – United States, 2013, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Nov. 25, 2016), available at https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/65/ss/ss6512a1.htm; Tara C. Jatlaoui, Jill Shah, Michele G. Mandel, Jamie W. Krashin, Danielle B. Suchdev, Denise J. Jamieson, and Karen Pazol, Abortion Surveillance – United States, 2014 Supplemental, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Nov. 23, 2018) available at https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/66/ss/ss6624a1.htm?s_cid=ss6624a1_w; Tara C. Jatlaoui, Maegan E. Boutot, Michele G. Mandel, Maura K. Whiteman, Angeline Ti, Emily Petersen, and Karen Pazol, Abortion Surveillance – United States, 2015, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Nov. 23, 2018), available at https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/67/ss/ss6713a1.htm.
[2] Total is $33,983,611 according to the Florida Accountability Contract Tracking System. See Total Budgetary Amount, Grant Disbursement Information for Contract COH5P between Pregnancy Support Services Program and Department of Health, Florida Accountability Contract Tracking System (Jul. 1, 2009 to Jun. 30, 2013), available at https://facts.fldfs.com/Search/ContractDetail.aspx?AgencyId=640000&ContractId=COH5P; Total Budgetary Amount, Grant Disbursement Information for Contract COHD2 between Pregnancy Support Services Program and Department of Health, Florida Accountability Contract Tracking System (Jul. 1, 2013 to Jun. 30, 2017), available at https://facts.fldfs.com/Search/ContractDetail.aspx?AgencyId=640000&ContractId=COHD2; Total Budgetary Amount, Grant Disbursement Information for Contract COHN6 between Pregnancy Support Services Program and Department of Health, Florida Accountability Contract Tracking System (Jul. 1, 2017 to Jun. 30, 2021), available at https://facts.fldfs.com/Search/ContractDetail.aspx?AgencyId=640000&ContractId=COHN6.
[3] Florida Pregnancy Support Services Program, Contract COHN6, State of Florida Department of Health and Florida Pregnancy Care Network, Inc. (Jun. 30, 2017), available at https://beta.documentcloud.org/documents/7208161-CN-640000-COHN6; Florida Pregnancy Support Services Program, Contract COHD2, State of Florida Department of Health and Florida Pregnancy Care Network, Inc. (Jul. 3, 2013), available at https://beta.documentcloud.org/documents/20412915-cn-640000-cohd2; Florida Pregnancy Support Services Program, Contract #COH5P, State of Florida Department of Health and Florida Pregnancy Care Network, Inc. (Jul. 16, 2009), available at https://beta.documentcloud.org/documents/20412911-cn-640000-coh5p.