What to Know About Crisis Pregnancy Centers in Kansas and Missouri
A crisis pregnancy center is an organization that offers advice and resources related to pregnancy, but does not recommend, refer or provide abortions. These centers, which are nonprofit organizations focused on pregnancy counseling, encourage people to continue their pregnancies instead of getting abortions. According to Missouri’s Department of Social Services, these agencies encourage women to carry their pregnancies to term by offering pregnancy testing and counseling with emotional and material support.
The Landscape of Pregnancy Centers
Advice & Aid Pregnancy Centers is one of about 2,500 crisis pregnancy centers in the United States, at least a dozen of them in the Kansas City metro. The national map shows 73 centers in Missouri and 38 in Kansas. In the Kansas City area, these include:
- Resource Health (formerly known as Rachel House)
- Advice and Aid Pregnancy Centers
- Kansas City Pregnancy Clinic
- Parkville Women’s Clinic
- Birthright of Kansas City
- Liberty Women’s Clinic
Services and Faith-Based Operations
What services do crisis pregnancy centers provide? Most facilities offer maternity clothing, baby items and referrals to financial and housing assistance. Some centers provide pregnancy tests and supplies for new parents, like diapers and baby clothes, but they may require clients to attend classes or workshops in order to obtain these free items. These classes can include religious elements, as many centers are affiliated with religious groups and are often steeped in Christian faith.
To counter criticism that the centers don’t provide medical care, some are hiring medically trained staff and putting registered nurses in charge. Liberty Women’s Clinic, for example, offers pregnancy testing, options counseling, limited obstetrical ultrasound, and STI testing and treatment. This procedure is performed by a registered nurse or nurse practitioner. However, some pregnancy centers only provide information or counseling without medical professionals on staff.
Comparison of Facility Types
| Facility Type | Primary Goal | Medical Status |
|---|---|---|
| Abortion Clinics (e.g., Planned Parenthood) | Offer a full range of reproductive medical services, including abortion. | Require state licensure and need to adhere to state regulations. |
| Crisis Pregnancy Centers | Make abortion “unthinkable” and encourage carrying pregnancies to term. | In most cases, not a licensed and regulated medical facility. |
Regulation and Licensing
Is a crisis pregnancy center a licensed and regulated medical facility? In most cases, no. Missouri’s definition of a “pregnancy resource center” does not require that it perform medical services or register with the state health department. While medical professionals who work at such centers must hold their own medical licenses, the other employees and the centers themselves do not need licenses. Crisis pregnancy centers are not among the over 30 types of medical and health-related facilities that the state regulates with monitoring and inspections.
This can be confusing because some centers advertise services like “free abortion and abortion pill education.” Critics continue to label them “fake clinics,” calling their marketing “misleading.” In contrast, abortion facilities require state licensure and adhere to strict state regulations, though there are no longer any abortion clinics operating in Missouri following the recent ban.
Funding and Political Support
Taxpayer funding of centers nationwide has escalated fivefold over the last decade. Missouri already led all but two states in providing tax dollars to such centers — nearly $45 million since 2010. Now as almost all abortion is outlawed in the state, taxpayers can claim even more tax credit for their donations to the centers. In Kansas, where voters overwhelmingly affirmed the right to an abortion, lobbyists plan to ask for increased state funding for the centers. More money could buy more ultrasound machines, which the centers use to encourage women to carry a pregnancy to term.