ABORTION INFO – WHERE TO GO FIRST?

This page Includes: First Things First—Patient Reviews—Costs—Risks Explained–Get Help—Citations.

If you have an unplanned pregnancy and are considering abortion, you may be feeling emotional. You will have to decide where to go first to get accurate medical information, respect, and supportive help. It’s your pregnancy, your right to know, and your decision.

CAPS Pregnancy + Medical Clinics and Planned Parenthood are two of the most recognizable pregnancy service Medical Clinics in San Diego.

Where should you go first? Here is a valuable, factual side-by-side comparison, to help you decide.

BOTTOM LINE – CAPS stacks up as the best first step choice in every category, as shown below. Take a look!

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First Things First

Comparison – See if the clinic’s patient service steps are in the best, correct order. The best order of steps helps you make a fact-based, confident decision for your situation.

Doing things in the correct order works. It also keeps you safe and you can feel better. Here are some simple examples in life of the correct order:

  • You select a clean cup before you drink it from it.
  • In your car, buckle your safety belt before you start driving, not during or after an accident.
  • You get accurate facts and understanding, before making decisions.

In pregnancy decisions, the correct order is:

  1. Pregnancy test.
  2. Ultrasound exam.
  3. Review the facts and your pregnancy options including getting your questions and concerns answered.
  4. Make your informed decision about what to do.

Planned Parenthood – appears to do things out of order. Some people who have gone to Planned Parenthood report they had to schedule their abortion first, before they could schedule an ultrasound. On its website Planned Parenthood only presents ultrasounds with abortion, as a package.2,3  This puts the last step (#4) in 1st place – it is logically out of order.

Them putting the abortion appointment first before providing all the facts, forces a woman to express a preference for an abortion before getting any other information. This doesn’t offer a person a real choice, but appears to immediately guide a person toward an abortion.

An abortion may not be needed or may not occur. A woman may not need an abortion if she has already started to miscarry, which often is revealed with an ultrasound. Or a woman may have some health issues where a typical abortion procedure would create problems.

So, for the woman (and possibly the man involved) requiring an abortion appointment first, could create increased anxiety and could unnecessarily cost money because the person is not feeling sure about what they want to do yet.

CAPS – follows the logical order of steps 1 to 4. This is clear and calming.

  1. Pregnancy test.
  2. Ultrasound exam.
  3. Review the facts and your pregnancy options including getting your questions and concerns answered.
  4. Make your informed decision about what to do.

BOTTOM LINE – CAPS provides the logical way to get informed about all the facts (steps 1-3) in a neutral appointment, then you decide (step 4).

Patient Reviews & Satisfaction

Comparison – See the clinic’s average total numbers of patient Google reviews at San Diego locations. For clinics with multiple reviews, this shows Google’s rating scale of 1 to 5 stars, with 1 being the lowest, and 5 being the highest.

Planned Parenthood – 2.6 to 3.8 stars.

CAPS – 4.7 to 5.0 stars.

BOTTOM LINE – CAPS Patients have much higher consistent ratings and satisfaction. CAPS has more glowing reviews about useful information, professionalism, and patients feeling cared for and supported.

Costs

Comparison – See if the clinic’s costs are easy to understand, what are the costs, and if the focus is on the clinic getting money and getting paid.

Planned Parenthood – Specific prices or a range of prices, are not presented up front on the website. Payment seems confusing. A strong focus is on them getting money and getting paid. They require some of your private information up front including income and number of dependents.

Planned Parenthood website says: “The cost of an abortion varies. Fees are based on a sliding scale and are determined by the patient’s monthly income and number of dependents. This means, you pay what you can afford.” But then they say: “Bottom Line: No one will be turned away from receiving care.” 1

However, this seems to contradict what they say on other pages where they only talk about insurance coverage and making sure they get paid. They do not mention anything about patients not being turned away. If Planned Parenthood is not in your insurance coverage, it appears they may not be an option for you: “We recommend contacting your insurance company directly to confirm your eligibility, benefits, and if Planned Parenthood is in your plan’s network.” 2,3

CAPS – Pregnancy service costs including abortion education information are completely FREE. You do not have to contact your insurance company. Your privacy is respected – you do not have to tell anyone your income or number of dependents. There are no strings attached.

  • FREE pregnancy testing – a lab grade, nurse verified test to confirm if you are actually pregnant.
  • FREE pregnancy ultrasound – to determine how far along you are, location of the pregnancy in the uterus, whether there is a presence or absence of a fetal heartbeat, and assess what options you may have.
  • FREE abortion education – to answer your questions and provide information so you can make an informed choice.
  • FREE pregnancy ‘Decision Aid’ options worksheet – to help you think through your own preferences and help you define the information you need to make a decision.

BOTTOM LINE – CAPS pregnancy services costs including abortion education information, are simple and easy to understand. FREE!

Risks Explained

Comparison – See if important Abortion Risk information is presented by the clinic up front on the website, and how accurate it is.

Planned Parenthood – Does not present the U.S. FDA Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS) program within their website Abortion Pill information.

The FDA REMS program states there is risk of serious complications associated with Mifepristone, one of the abortion pill drugs, which requires users to be informed about those risks. 5,6

Planned Parenthood makes a claim that contradicts the FDA REMS program by stating that Abortion Pill drugs are safer than many other medicines like penicillin, Tylenol, and Viagra, but they do not provide any source documentation for those statements. 4 None of those other medications are on the FDA REMS program for risk management.

Planned Parenthood contradicts the FDA guidance to use the Abortion Pill only up to 10 weeks. They say you can use the Abortion Pill up to 11 weeks. 7

CAPS – Presents on the website and shares with you in appointments, what the U.S. FDA REMS program risks are in the context of other risks and possible complications. 8 CAPS states the FDA guidance about use of the Abortion Pill up to 10 weeks.

BOTTOM LINE – CAPS states FDA guidance, explains more key risks up front, and puts information in correct context.

GET HELP

Contact CAPS first. CAPS is a better first step to get initial information than from Planned Parenthood or other abortion clinics in San Diego.

CAPS is a licensed Medical Clinic and will provide you with factual information and comforting support. We offer abortion consultations to answer your questions and inform you.

This includes types of abortions, surgical abortion vs medical abortion (abortion pill) options, abortion step-by-step procedures, abortion risks and side effects, other pregnancy options, and your legal rights. Please note that CAPS staff do not provide legal advice.

CAPS will help you examine the range of pregnancy options (abortion, parenting, adoption) including the details about each option, so you can make the best choice for your situation.

No matter what choice you make, CAPS will be there for you before, during, and after your pregnancy.

CAPS is different from some other medical clinics since we receive no financial profit from your pregnancy because we do not perform or refer for abortions or arrange adoptions. We do refer to other organizations for adoptions if you are interested in that option. We will help you examine the full range of options (abortion, parenting, adoption) including the variables for each option, so you can make the best choice for your situation.

All pregnancy services are FREE, including FREE pregnancy test, FREE ultrasound, and FREE pregnancy and abortion education. We also provide low to no cost STI / STD testing. All our services to you are private – your privacy is important to us.

  • FREE pregnancy testing – a lab grade, nurse verified test to confirm if you are actually pregnant.
  • FREE pregnancy ultrasound – to determine how far along you are, location of the pregnancy in the uterus, whether there is a presence or absence of a fetal heartbeat, and assess what options you may have.
  • FREE abortion education – to answer your questions and provide information so you can make an informed choice.
  • FREE pregnancy ‘Decision Aid’ options worksheet – to help you think through your own preferences and help you define the information you need to make a decision.

To get help, contact us at any of the 4 clinic locations, call us at 619-337-8080, or schedule an appointment.

Citations

1 Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest. (n.d.). Abortion Care. Retrieved May 31, 2024 from https://www.plannedparenthood.org/planned-parenthood-pacific-southwest/campaigns/abortion-care

2 Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest. (n.d.). In-Clinic Abortion Procedure. Retrieved May 31, 2024 from https://www.plannedparenthood.org/planned-parenthood-pacific-southwest/patients/visits-and-payment/in-clinic-abortion-procedure

3 Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest. (n.d.). Medication Abortion Procedure. Retrieved May 31, 2024 from https://www.plannedparenthood.org/planned-parenthood-pacific-southwest/patients/visits-and-payment/medication-abortion-procedure

4 Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest. (n.d.). How Safe Is the Abortion Pill? Retrieved May 31, 2024 from https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/abortion/the-abortion-pill/how-safe-is-the-abortion-pill

5 U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (2023). Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS). Retrieved May 31, 2024 from https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-safety-and-availability/risk-evaluation-and-mitigation-strategies-rems

6 U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (2023). Approved Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies (REMS). Retrieved May 31, 2024 from https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cder/rems/index.cfm?event=RemsDetails.page&REMS=390

7 Planned Parenthood. (n.d.). The Abortion Pill. Retrieved July 12, 2024 from
https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/abortion/the-abortion-pill

8 CAPS Pregnancy + Medical Clinics (n.d.). Medical Abortion. Retrieved May 31, 2024 from
https://capspregnancyclinics.org/abortion/medical-abortion-pill/