Tennessee joins multistate coalition alleging Yelp discriminates against crisis pregnancy centers

A day after Gov. Bill Lee announced his plan to provide $100 million in grant funding for crisis pregnancy centers, the state attorney general on Tuesday signed on with two dozen other states to protest Yelp's practice of adding consumer notices for the centers.

Crisis pregnancy centers are often run by religious nonprofits that offer pregnancy tests, ultrasounds and other services, while trying to dissuade people from getting abortions.

Yelp, the popular online directory for business reviews, said it began labeling the centers more clearly in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe v. Wade last year to "provide consumers with reliable information." The profiles now include notices stating the centers “typically provide limited medical services and may not have licensed medical professionals onsite.”

In a letter Tuesday to Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said the notices unfairly discredit crisis pregnancy centers and discourage people from using their services.

Cameron, a Republican, is leading a coalition of two dozen attorneys generals in the effort against Yelp.

"...Yelp’s Consumer Notice is misleading because it is overbroad," the letter said. "The notice flagsevery crisis pregnancy center as 'typically provid[ing] limited medical services,' regardless of the kind of medical services a center actually offers. Likewise, the notice flags every crisis pregnancy center as one that 'may not have licensed medical professionals onsite,' regardless of whether the center actually has licensed medicalprofessionals onsite."

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti in a statement said Yelp is discriminating against the centers.

“It is unconscionable for Yelp to steer vulnerable women away from nonprofits that will support them through pregnancy and motherhood,” Skrmetti said.

A spokesperson for Yelp could not immediately be reached for comment.

The push comes as Tennessee, which has one of the country's strictest abortion bans, considers $100 million in grant funding for crisis pregnancy centers. The governor, who is staunchly anti-abortion and has long supported such centers, announced the plan in his State of the State address on Monday.

If approved, it would be one of the nation's largest state-funded efforts for crisis pregnancy centers.

Skrmetti's decision to join with the other states comes as scrutiny, particularly among Democrats, of the centers is increasing. At least one Democratic lawmaker on Monday began raising questions about Lee’s proposed grant fund as the General Assembly considers his budget proposal.

Reach reporter Kelly Puente at kpuente@tennessean.com or reach her on Twitter at @KellyPuenteTN

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Attorney General joins multistate coalition alleging Yelp discriminates against crisis pregnancy centers