Attorney General Rob Bonta (D-California) is suing pro-life ministries — specifically Heartbeat International and RealOption Medical Clinics — for false advertising. The state of California is seeking a gag order and $20 million in fines.
The case centers on Abortion Pill Reversal (APR), a process where extra progesterone is administered to reverse the effects of the first pill in a chemical abortion regimen.
According to Bonta’s claims, the pill has no scientific backing and poses a potential risk to patients. He accused these pro-life organizations of not providing accurate information for an “experimental procedure.”
"Those who are struggling with the complex decision to get an abortion deserve support and trustworthy guidance — not lies and misinformation," said Bonta in 2023 upon announcing the lawsuit. "We are launching today's lawsuit to put a stop to their predatory and unlawful behavior."
According to Thomas Moore Society, peer-review studies reveal that APR has a 64%-68% success rate.
Bonta also claimed these pro-life clinics are taking advantage of pregnant women at “a deeply vulnerable time in their lives.” Furthermore, he said that 95% of women don’t regret having an abortion.
However, National Right to Life reported in 2025 that grief is a more common feeling following an abortion than relief.
The trial began on June 24.
Peter Breen is the executive vice president and head of litigation of Thomas More Society. Talking about this on “Washington Watch,” he said the state's case lacks actual victims and is an unconstitutional assault on First Amendment free speech rights.
"If this attorney general in California can succeed, then attorneys general across the country can come after the pro-life movement," Breen says.
In order for activists to speak freely in favor of pregnancy centers and to reach out to women, Breen said they have to have those free speech rights.
"We've got to be able to talk about abortion and what it does to women and does to families," Breen states.
The attorney also warned that a loss could bankrupt these ministries and allow other states to weaponize copycat lawsuits against the pro-life movement.
"It would be ruinous. It would bankrupt Heartbeat and really cripple the American pregnancy center movement," Breen says.
