Anti-abortion “crisis pregnancy” centers reportedly got their hands on at least $4 million in forgivable federal loans as part of the Trump administration’s coronavirus bailout package. The Guardian reports that, given a lack of transparency from the U.S. Small Business Administration on the exact amounts of loans, the true total given out to the centers could be as high as $10 million. The centers are designed to look like women’s health clinics—but reportedly push dubious medical treatments, rail against modern birth-control methods, and exaggerate the risks of abortion to persuade women not to have them. They received financial backing from the government even though evidence-based family-planning organizations have been excluded from the programs. In May, the Trump administration told Planned Parenthood affiliates around the U.S. to return millions of dollars in loans it received through the relief package.
