A faith-based medical provider is pushing back against an advertising company’s refusal to display a billboard campaign promoting its abortion pill reversal services, a decision that the organization argues is a “disservice” to women looking to save their pregnancies. 

Brandi Swindell, the founder and CEO of Stanton Healthcare, a pro-life pregnancy center with multiple licensed medical clinics across the country, expressed disappointment in the Lamar Advertising Company for refusing to display her organization’s billboard campaign.

“We sincerely hope Lamar will immediately reconsider and recognize the reasons given for rejecting our billboard are flawed, inaccurate, and denies women critical medical choices,” Swindell said in a statement provided to The Christian Post. 

“At its heart, this issue is about women facing difficult moments who deserve to know that hope and the best medical care are available,” the Stanton Healthcare CEO added. “Refusing to display these billboards is a disservice not only to Stanton Healthcare but to the women of the Treasure Valley, the entire state of Idaho, and beyond. Women deserve to know that they are not alone and that professional medical care is available to them.”

The Lamar Advertising Company did not immediately respond to The Christian Post’s request for comment.

In response to the situation, the non-profit medical organization retained legal assistance from the American Center for Law and Justice, which sent a letter on Wednesday to Desi Gibbons-Throngard, the general manager of Lamar Advertising Company in Boise. 

The legal group requested a response from the advertising company within 10 business days of receipt of the letter. 

According to the letter, Lamar issued a contract to Stanton Healthcare for an outdoor advertising campaign consisting of 14 billboard panels across the Boise and Nampa/Caldwell, Idaho markets. The legal group’s letter also noted that the contract was “fully executed,” and the agreement followed multiple meetings between Stanton’s representative and Lamar Account Executive Chris Wing. 

During those discussions about the content of the advertisement campaign, Wing reportedly said that a display using “generalized language” about abortion pill reversal would be acceptable, according to ACLJ’s letter. 

On. Feb 11, however, Wing informed the pro-life organization that the advertising company’s legal department had determined that it could not post the billboard campaign. As for the reason, one of the company’s employees, Hal Kilshaw, stated: “We do not post abortion pill reversal as it has not been deemed safe and effective by the FDA.”

In its letter to Lamar Advertising, ACLJ requested clarification on several points to better understand the company’s decision, such as the policies or guidelines for evaluating advertisements for medical treatments or therapies. 

The legal group also requested that Lamar Advertising identify a source supporting the statement that abortion pill reversal has not been deemed “safe and effective” by the FDA.

In addition, ACLJ argued that there is a difference between a treatment that the FDA has affirmatively determined to be unsafe and a treatment that “the FDA has not made a safety or efficacy determination for a particular use.”

“The FDA has issued no regulation, guidance document, warning, or administrative determination that prohibits, restricts, or conditions the advertising of abortion pill reversal services or information. The practice of APR — which typically involves the administration of progesterone following incomplete mifepristone ingestion — is a lawful medical procedure,” the legal group stated in its letter. 

“It appears Lamar personnel has manufactured a regulatory prohibition where none exists,” the letter continued. “The assertion that the FDA’s silence on efficacy translates into a prohibition on advertising is legally unfounded and factually unsupported.” 

The abortion pill reversal treatment typically involves a woman who has taken mifepristone — the first drug in the abortion pill regimen — taking progesterone, which is a natural pregnancy hormone, to counteract the effects of the drug. 

While pro-life advocates and pro-life medical groups insist that the abortion pill reversal treatment is effective, arguing that it has saved thousands of lives, groups such as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists claim that the evidence is lacking.

Rev. Patrick Mahoney, the chief strategy officer for Stanton Public Policy Center, the policy division of Stanton Healthcare, said in a statement provided to CP that the organization’s message to Lamar Advertising “is simple and direct.” 

“Please support women and allow them to receive accurate and science-based medical information regarding abortion pill reversal,” Mahoney stated. 

“Tragically, Lamar Advertising is choosing to pursue the course of viewpoint discrimination and abortion politics while taking it upon themselves to censor critical medical information, which should be made available to women regarding abortion pill reversal,” the pro-life advocate argued. “Lamar is denying women information to help assist them in making informed personal healthcare decisions.”

“Stanton calls for Lamar to immediately allow Stanton’s billboard campaign to move forward and stop playing politics with the lives of innocent women and children,” he continued.

News Source : https://www.christianpost.com/news/advertising-company-refuses-to-promote-abortion-pill-reversal.html