Shortly after its introduction, the Republican-sponsored More Opportunities for Moms to Succeed Act (MOMS Act) faced criticism from Democrats, who alleged it aimed to compile a database of pregnant women. The bill, introduced by Senator Katie Britt, proposes the creation of a government website, pregnancy.gov, intended as a comprehensive resource for expectant mothers and women with young children.
However, a review of the bill text by Fox News Digital revealed no language authorizing the construction of a database of pregnant women. The site would provide resources for postpartum women and mothers with young children, and there is no compulsory element mandating women to visit the site or provide their personal information.
Despite these clarifications, Democratic lawmakers and organizations like the Democratic National Committee (DNC) have continued to allege that the bill would create a database to track pregnant women, potentially enabling the government to block access to abortions. However, the bill does not explicitly mention abortion or any measures to restrict access to the procedure.
In response to these claims, Senator Britt has defended the bill, stating that it aims to provide a database of resources for women, not a database of women. She emphasized that women’s privacy is expressly protected and that any claims to the contrary are an attempt to distract from the Democrats’ focus on abortion rights.
The bill also includes provisions for providing resources to women postpartum and mothers of young children. It would not be the first government website to prompt visitors for location or contact information. Healthcare.gov, for example, asks visitors for their home state, email, and data policy consent before taking any other action on the site.
Pro-life organizations like Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America have expressed support for the bill, calling the claims about a database of pregnant women intentionally false and dangerous. They encourage the public to read the bill, which they say provides a database of help for women, not a database of women.
Advance America Freedom, an organization started by former Vice President Mike Pence, has also weighed in, stating that the abortion industry has made baseless smears against the MOMS Act. They contend that Planned Parenthood would rather force hopeful mothers into abortions than ensure they have access to pregnancy resource centers and child support.
