Anti-abortion pregnancy centers see chance to grow in wake of Supreme Court's ruling

Washington — The Supreme Court's decision last month nullifying the constitutional right to an abortion has opened a path for organizations that aim to dissuade women from having abortions to expand their operations, especially in states that have banned the procedure or restricted access, prompting their few abortion clinics to shutter.

Known as crisis pregnancy centers, there are more than 2,500 of these facilities in the United States, and they vastly outnumber Planned Parenthood facilities, according to an analysis from the Charlotte Lozier Institute, the research arm of the anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America.

The centers, many faith-based, offer pregnancy tests, counseling and resources like clothes, diapers and parenting classes. Some provide limited medical services such as ultrasounds. And since the high court's conservative majority struck down Roe v. Wade, the landmark decision that legalized abortion nationwide, the pregnancy centers — particularly in Republican-led states — have seen an uptick in interest from their communities and an opportunity to grow their resources.