In the days leading up to the 2024 March for Life, Heartbeat arranged a Congressional Staff briefing with pro-life Members of Congress to discuss the power of pregnancy help. More than 20 Congressional and Senate offices were represented and each had an opportunity to ask questions to gain a clearer understanding of pregnancy help as a whole.

Heartbeat President Jor-El Godsey opened the briefing with remarks on the history and foundation of the pregnancy help movement, moving into the current challenges. 

“A concerted effort empowered by abortion proponents and emboldened by political opportunists has been mounted to discredit, to disrupt and even destroy the work of pregnancy help centers,” Godsey said. “The abortion industry has led the charge in calling us fake clinics, and doing so while these pregnancy centers actually have licensed healthcare professionals on staff, and as volunteers, activists.”

See the facts in answer to pro-abortion “fake clinic” claims at PregnancyCenterTruth.com.

He discussed big tech censorship of pregnancy help, the Supreme Court Dobbs ruling, and the prevalence of chemical abortion. Jor-El was followed by Heartbeat International’s Senior Director of Medical Impact Christa Brown, who covered both chemical abortion and Abortion Pill Reversal (APR) for the briefing, enlightening many of them about this shift in the abortion industry.

This opened the opportunity for Katelynn, an APR mom who received immediate and ongoing care through the pregnancy help movement, to share her testimony. Her daughter, Aubrie, was in attendance as proof of the ongoing care and compassionate support that happens in pregnancy centers and maternity homes every day. (Read more about Katelynn and her journey here.)

Since Dobbs, the pregnancy help movement has been the target of increasing hostility, whether through the violence in the early days following Dobbs or now efforts to delegitimize pregnancy centers with accusations the centers are misleading clients, to efforts to enact local ordinances or state laws that are additionally burdensome on the speech rights of centers. Heartbeat's General Counsel, Danielle White, addressed these concerns. 

After the briefing, pregnancy help leaders told their story on Capitol Hill at a Congressional press conference highlighting how pregnancy centers walk with women through pregnancy, serving them and their families with support and compassion.

The press conference took place against the backdrop of a number of pro-life measures either passed or introduced, with the U.S. House of Representatives passing the Pregnant Students’ Rights Act and the Supporting Pregnant and Parenting Women and Families Act that day. The Pregnant Students’ Rights Act was sponsored by Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-IA) and the Supporting Pregnant and Parenting Women and Families Act was sponsored by Rep. Michelle Fischbach (R-MN).

Also on Thursday, Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) led the introduction of the Pregnancy Center Support Act, and Rep. Smith to introduce the Let Pregnancy Centers Serve Act. 

The various measures were to protect women and families in need and also pregnancy help from pro-abortion affronts such as the Biden administration’s proposed rule targeting the use of TANF funding by pregnancy centers and alternatives to abortion programs.

At the press conference, Congressman Chris Smith said the great work that pregnancy centers do is a story that has not been told.

“Eighty-three % of all Americans, 75% of the Democrats in this country support the great work of the women and men and all of those back in the states who are doing the work for these pregnancy centers,” Smith said, citing the latest Knights of Columbus-Marist Poll. 

“It is all about love and what they do, which again, does not get much press,” Smith said. “When a woman does have the abortion, they're there for her as well. When it's the baby and the mother they love them both. When it's just the mother, they still love her and help her with counseling and assistance. It's incredible. Great love in action.”

Heartbeat International has teamed up with the March for Life Education and Defense Fund to organize a nationwide donation drive for pregnancy centers and maternity homes! You are the backbone of what it means to build a culture of Life. We are better together in this movement, so when they proposed we partner to bless pregnancy help organizations with donations, we eagerly agreed. We are, and have always been, "with every woman, for every child." 

As our thanks to you, the March for Life called on marchers and the entire pro-life community to contribute to a pregnancy help organization like yours. Watch their March for Life featured commercial below where they tout the good work of pregnancy help!

We were able to fill the March for Life website with more than 500 pregnancy centers and maternity homes nationwide so people can provide practical support in their local communities.

Feel free to share this video and the Donation Drive with your supporters and highlight the partnerships within the movement to amplify the message of hope offered through your efforts. 

March for Life Nationwide Donation Drive: https://marchforlife.org/pregnancyhelp/

 The Resource Center

Greeley, CO

 The Resource Center has been serving Northern Colorado for over four decades with locations in Greeley and Windsor. We are a community-funded medical center specializing in pregnancy and STD resources and support. Our nurses and trained advocates take a holistic approach meaning we care about your physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and financial needs. Our professional services are designed by experienced staff to help you find answers to make the best decision for your life and circumstances.

We believe you deserve comprehensive and accurate medical information regarding an unplanned pregnancy, abortion procedures, parenting, adoption, and STDs. During your appointment, you will meet one-on-one with an advocate where you can learn about your options, share what’s on your mind, and process all the information in a safe environment. All of our services and materials are free of charge, so we will never benefit financially from any decision you make.

Watch two stories of lives impacted by The Resource Center below!

Resource Center 2017 - Kathryn's Story from The Resource Center on Vimeo.

What It Means to Be a Sister Center

Becoming a Sister Center is a unique and uplifting opportunity to receive encouragement, guidance, and friendship from an experienced pregnancy help center in another part of the world. Through the Sister Center Program, your center will be paired with a supportive international mentor who is eager to walk alongside you as you grow in your life-affirming mission.

As a Sister Center, you’ll take part in monthly calls that offer a safe and welcoming space to connect, pray, and learn together. These conversations are an opportunity to:

• Pray together — uniting in faith to lift up each other’s needs, your clients, your team, and your community.

• Gain insight and encouragement — by learning from your Sister Center’s experiences and discovering new ways to approach challenges in your local context.

• Share your journey — exchanging stories, ideas, and strategies that help you serve women and families with compassion and excellence.

This relationship is not focused on financial support, but on something even more powerful — shared time, wisdom, and mutual encouragement. It’s a chance to grow stronger through friendship, to be inspired, and to know you are not alone in this work.

You are part of a global movement — and your Sister Center is here to walk beside you.

Join the Sister Center Program and take the next step in your center’s journey with support, connection, and hope.

Talking Points

• Threat to Crucial Support Services: The Proposed Rule by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) poses a significant threat to women being denied pregnancy help through the targeting of pregnancy centers and alternatives to abortion programs.
  
  
• Undermining TANF Flexibility: The Proposed Rule undermines the flexibility granted to states under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. States, designed to have autonomy in addressing the root causes of poverty, may face politically motivated decisions that contradict the original intent of TANF reforms.
  
  
• Bias Against Pro-Life Mission: The regulatory changes introduced by HHS disproportionately target pregnancy centers without presenting evidence of any misuse of federal funds. This bias against their pro-life mission raises concerns about the administration's impartiality and adherence to Congress' design for TANF.
  
  
• Lack of Comprehensive Impact Analysis: The Proposed Rule lacks a comprehensive analysis of the potential impact on federal and state expenditures, as well as the harm that withdrawing TANF funding would cause to individuals served by pregnancy centers. This oversight undermines the credibility of the proposed changes.
  
  
• Urgent Call for Withdrawal: Given the potential harm to pregnant women and their unborn babies, we urgently call for the withdrawal of the Proposed Rule. It is essential to maintain the ongoing support provided by pregnancy centers and alternatives to abortion programs, aligning with the core principles and purposes of the TANF program.

Sample Letter

Subject: Urgent Request for Withdrawal of Proposed Rule on TANF Funding for Pregnancy Centers

Dear Secretary Becerra:

We write to express our deep concern about the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proposed rule, “Strengthening Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) as a Safety Net and Work Program,” published on October 2, 2023. The Proposed Rule targets pregnancy centers and alternatives to abortion programs, jeopardizing their funding and, consequently, the crucial assistance they provide to pregnant women in need.

TANF, established in 1996, aims to address poverty's root causes and reduce dependency on government by promoting work and marriage. Pregnancy centers, with over 2,700 across the country, play a vital role in providing support to women facing difficult pregnancies, offering services like counseling, ultrasounds, and material assistance at virtually no cost. These centers, often staffed by volunteers, saved taxpayers an estimated $266 million in 2019.

The Proposed Rule raises significant concerns as it targets pregnancy centers and alternatives to abortion programs, potentially stripping them of TANF funding. This move, seemingly aligned with the Biden administration's pro-abortion agenda, is inconsistent with Congress' intent to grant states flexibility in implementing TANF reforms.

HHS's regulatory changes allow the Secretary to question the legitimacy of TANF expenditures, creating a risk of politically motivated decisions that could undermine the autonomy of states. The Proposed Rule singles out pregnancy centers without providing evidence of misuse of federal funds, revealing a bias against their pro-life mission.

Moreover, HHS fails to address the potential impact on federal and state expenditures or the harm to individuals served by pregnancy centers if TANF funding is withdrawn. The lack of comprehensive analysis undermines the credibility of the Proposed Rule.

In conclusion, we urge the immediate withdrawal of the Proposed Rule. Pregnant women and their unborn babies deserve continued support from pregnancy centers and alternatives to abortion programs. The Proposed Rule jeopardizes this support and undermines the integrity of the TANF program.

Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]
[Your Organization]
[Contact Information]

Resources

• Read the HHS Proposed Rule Change
  
• Heartbeat's Life Trends 
• Lozier Institute's Pregnancy Center fact sheet

I know you will enjoy learning more about Heartbeat, where moms find hope and babies are saved every day. - Cindi

Her Problem:

• She feels alone
• She encounters relentless marketing promoting abortion
• She feels forced to make a quick decision
• She knows few options beyond abortion
• She has medical questions and concerns

Her Solution: 

The Option Line contact center answers cries for help 24/7/365, provides bilingual service every hour, and connects with 1,100 abortion shoppers each day providing them with immediate care and connecting them to life-affirming pregnancy help. Since 2003, more than 5 Million women have contacted Option Line for help.

You have an opportunity to bring hopeful messages about options, resources, and the value of a child to key influencers.

• The average woman is uninformed about life-affirming pregnancy options when abortion shopping
• Help prepare her influencers with critical language that supports her and encourages life decisions
• We need to combat the increased selling of abortion by Big Media
• Potential Reach = Nearly 100M for each Cable-TV commercial and digital campaign

California's Attorney General has sued Heartbeat to prevent us from advertising Abortion Pill Reversal. If you feel so called, you can stand with us as we continue to push back against pro-abortion lies against the good work of pregnancy help. We know this will be a long battle, and we also have faith in the victory!

The majority of all abortions in the U.S. occur through chemical abortion, the abortion pill, with some reports showing an upwards of 80%.

The abortion pill comes in two parts and is approved by the FDA for use up to 10 weeks of pregnancy. The first chemical, mifepristone (or RU-486), is the first pill used in a chemical abortion and blocks the effects of progesterone, a hormone necessary for a pregnancy to thrive. The second part, misoprostol, expels the baby. 

Many women regret their abortions—and some choose to reverse the effects of chemical abortion drugs before taking the second drug, often saving their baby’s life. If a woman has regrets after taking the first pill, the pregnancy may be saved by the Abortion Pill Rescue Network.

• There is a window between the first and second chemical abortion drug where the effects can be reversed, and the baby can be saved.
• Chemical abortion is typically done up to 10 weeks gestation, when an unborn baby has a heartbeat, fingers and toes, and his unique fingerprints begin to form.
• Abortion Pill Reversal uses the natural hormone progesterone to counteract the life-ending effects of chemical abortion drugs.
• Data suggests that Abortion Pill Reversal has saved over 4,500 unborn lives and has a 64-68% success rate.
• Women should have the choice to reconsider going through with an abortion.
• Women deserve real healthcare.

How does Abortion Pill Reversal work?

Progesterone is a natural hormone needed to sustain pregnancy and has been used for decades to safely and effectively prevent miscarriage and forestall preterm labor. Abortion pill reversal displaces mifepristone (the first drug in a chemical abortion) from progesterone receptors using the natural progesterone hormone, counteracting the effects of mifepristone and allowing the baby to continue growing. For women who have begun abortion pill reversal, progesterone treatment is continued through the end of the first trimester at a minimum, and beyond that if needed.

What are the side effects of Abortion Pill Reversal?

Progesterone is a natural hormone necessary for sustaining a pregnancy. For some women, progesterone may cause minor side effects including sleepiness, dizziness, and headaches.

Chemical abortion side effects include bleeding, life-threatening infections, and the inability to have future successful pregnancies and may require emergency medical treatment, surgeries, blood transfusions, and hysterectomies. The FDA’s currently approved label for mifepristone also states that between 2.9-4.6% of women will end up in an emergency room. Additionally, women who take the drugs at home face the mental anguish of performing their own abortion. Many women report being surprised by the sheer volume of bleeding and are haunted by the image of the dead child. In fact, some abortionists advise women not to look at all at the aborted baby. Additionally, the FDA and abortion activists are pushing for chemical abortion by mail, only increasing the danger to women, as there is no in-person doctor’s visit and no ultrasound confirming how developed the baby is or if the pregnancy is ectopic.

Why should doctors be able to use abortion pill reversal when it’s not approved by the FDA?

Progesterone is a natural hormone needed to sustain pregnancy and has been used for decades to safely and effectively prevent miscarriage and forestall preterm labor. Doctors may prescribe abortion pill reversal as part of an off-label use of the treatment. Pregnant women shouldn’t be denied treatment to save their unborn child just because they took the first abortion drug but changed their mind.

Healthy Outcomes

The protocol used in the Abortion Pill Reversal process is nothing new. In fact, progesterone has been used routinely and safely with pregnancy since the 1950s.^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6}

A 2018 peer-reviewed study showed positive results

• 64%-68% of the pregnancies were saved through Abortion Pill Reversal
• There was no increase in birth defects
• Lower preterm delivery rate than the general population

<sup>1. [Vaux NW and Rakoff AE: Estrogen-progesterone therapy: A new approach in the treatment of habitual abortion. Am J Obst Gynec 50:353, 1945.
2. Jones, GES: Some newer aspects of the management of infertility. JAMA 141:1123, 1949.]↩
3. [Progesterone support in pregnancy has been in use for nearly 60 years, having received its start with publications dating back to the 1940s.] (https://www.naprotechnology.com/progesterone.htm)
4. [Progestin Therapy to Prevent Preterm Birth: History and Effectiveness of Current Strategies and Development of Novel Approaches] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6766339/
5. [The Use of Progesterone for Prevention of Preterm Birth] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/5653589_The_Use_of_Progesterone_for_Prevention_of_Preterm_Birth
6. [The history of natural progesterone, the never-ending story] https://tahomaclinic.com/Private/Articles1/BHRT/Piette%202018%20-%20The%20history%20of%20natural%20progesterone,%20the%20never-ending%20story.pdf</sup>