A crisis pregnancy center is a non-profit organization, generally established by Christian pro-life supporters, as a means of encouraging pregnant women not to have abortions. As a noun, Christian is an appellation and moniker deriving from the appellation Christ, which many people associate exclusively with Jesus of Nazareth. ... Pro-life is a self-descriptive term used in English-speaking countries, and especially the United States of America for those who hold life, or the sanctity of life, or the right to life to be universal values, and seek their enforcement by legislation or constitutional provisions. ...

A center may be affiliated with a church, or it may operate as a parachurch organization. Church-affiliated centers are usually located off-site from the church in order to provide a non-intimidating setting. A church building (or simply church) is a building used in Christian worship. ... Evangelicalism, in a strictly lexical, but rarely used sense, refers to all things that are implied in belief that Jesus is the savior. ...

Depending on its size and resources, a center may provide the following services:

• Pregnancy tests (free and totally confidential; this is usually the basis used to encourage women to visit the center)
• Information and counseling about the various options available to a pregnant woman (adoption, abortion, or keeping the baby), with an emphasis on the risks posed by abortion (generally, the center believes that these risks are not fully disclosed by abortion supporters such as Planned Parenthood)
• Information and counseling about sexually transmitted diseases, with an emphasis on abstinence outside of marriage and a strong belief in marriage for non-married couples
• Religious literature, including Bibles
• Medical services such as ultrasound (generally, the center believes that a woman considering abortion, once she sees the developing fetus on the ultrasound, will decide to carry to term instead)
• Information on social services available by other organizations
• Baby-related items such as clothing (for mother and child), food and diapers, and furniture; some centers also provide assistance with finding accommodation and paying the rent
• Classes on child birth and child care

Some centers offer access to support groups for women suffering from post-abortion syndrome. Adoption is the legal act of permanently placing a child with a parent or parents other than the birth parents. ... PPFA Homepage Planned Parenthood is the name of several federations of health clinics that are spread out over the world,(the International Planned Parenthood Federation, various regional federations, as well as country-specific ones) focusing on issues related to reproductive services. ... Sexually-transmitted infections (STIs), also known as sexually-transmitted diseases (STDs), are diseases that are commonly transmitted between partners through some form of sexual activity, most commonly vaginal intercourse, oral sex, or anal sex. ... Sexual abstinence is the practice of voluntarily refraining from some or all aspects of sexual activity. ... Marriage is a relationship between individuals which has formed the foundation of the family for most societies. ... The Bible (sometimes The Book, Good Book, Word of God, The Word, or Scripture), from Greek (τα) βιβλια, (ta) biblia, (the) books, plural of βιβλιον, biblion, book, originally a diminutive of βιβλος, biblos, which in turn is derived from βυβλος—byblos, meaning papyrus, from the ancient Phoenician city of Byblos which exported this writing material... Obstetric ultrasonograph of a fetus at 16 weeks. ... Abortion trauma syndrome, also known as post-traumatic abortion syndrome and post-abortion syndrome (PAS), is a controversial condition, that is alleged to afflict women following an elective abortion and has been a part of questionable pro-life information campaigns. ...

Services are provided on a free and confidential basis to any woman, regardless of race, ethnicity, marital status, sexual orientation, or religion. (However, centers must report to the police any cases of statutory rape.) The term statutory rape is sometimes used when national and/or regional governments, citing an interest in protecting minors, consider people under a certain age to be unable to give consent, and therefore consider sexual contact with them to be equivalent to rape regardless of the minors consent. ...

NOT a licenced medical facility

Crisis Pregnancy Centers only mission is to discourage women from choosing abortion.

They come under criticism for positioning themselves as medical facilities when many lack the professional licensing from State departments of health.

These centers cannot provide prenatal care or treatment for Sexually Transmitted Diseases. They do not provide prescriptions or refills for contraceptives. They do not hand out 'free' condoms.

Funding and staffing

Funding and resources are generally provided by churches, individuals and businesses who support the pro-life cause, matching gifts from employers, and grants. Some centers are members of United Way and receive designated gifts as well as a percentage of non-designated gifts. Some centers may receive federal funding; however, many centers refuse such funding, as they do not want the government to dictate what religious counseling they can or cannot provide to women in need. Fundraisers are often used as well. The United Way of America is a coalition of charitable organizations that has traditionally pooled efforts in fund raising. ...

A center will have a director, who may be a full-time paid employee. Most staffing is provided by volunteers, the vast majority of whom are female.

Heartbeat International and Care Net are two major organizations with national networks of crisis pregnancy centers in the United States (centers may be affiliated with either or both networks). These two organizations have teamed up to operate Option Line, a 24-hour telephone and web-based listing and referral service. Option Line can be contacted at 1-800-395-HELP (4357) or www.optionline.org. Heartbeat International is an international association of over 900 crisis pregnancy centers, providing assistance in education, training, support services, and networking with other centers. ... Care Net is a national network of over 850 pregnancy centers that offer long-term assistance to women facing an unplanned or crisis pregnancy. ... Option Line is a 24-hour telephone (and associated web site) referral service to thousands of pro-life crisis pregnancy centers throughout the United states. ...

External links

Heartbeat International

Care Net

Option Line