Lawmakers have been pushing for this prior to the overturning of Roe v. Wade
Even before the Supreme Court announced the overturning of Roe v. Wade on June 24, the writing was pretty much on the wall courtesy of that leaked draft opinion in early May. But it was also around the time when lawmakers asked tech giants to provide better access to abortion resources. Google in particular was accused of leading women astray by including results for crisis pregnancy centers (often run by anti-abortion groups) in searches for abortion clinics. The company is now committing to transparency by adding labels to health organizations when people seek abortions through Google Search or Maps.
In a letter addressed to US Senator Mark Warner, D-Va., and Representative Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., Google said it is now marking clinics and hospitals with the labels “Provides abortions” and “Does not provide abortions” within ads on Search. Additionally, Google won’t display facilities that do not offer abortions when searching for “abortion near me” or “abortion clinics” within Maps. Users will also have the option to expand their search to include results from a broader area. However, people will continue to see results from organizations that don’t facilitate abortions.
Senator Warner responded positively to Google’s new labeling system in a press release, saying “I welcome the changes that Google has announced today so that women seeking abortion services aren’t directed towards fake clinics that traffic in misinformation and don’t provide comprehensive health services.”
Despite its obvious advantages, the new labels could potentially leave out several reproductive health clinics that offer support and medical care to abortion seekers, but not abortions. Since these organizations do not offer abortions, they could be confused with CPCs and other fake clinics, as Jezebel rightly points out. Google had updated its advertising policy in July to allow facilities that offer abortion medication after a telemedicine consultation or by mail order to be classified as abortion providers.
Crisis pregnancy centers have long posed as clinics that provide abortion, even if their main function was the exact opposite. So it should come as no surprise that these centers would go into overdrive following the Dobbs v. Jackson decision in June. Searches for abortion resources have expectedly spiked following the June decision, especially in states with stricter anti-abortion laws. As women seek reliable options for abortions across the US, Google has an important role to play in directing them to the right resources.
Separately, Google is adding similar labels to Maps and Search results for veterans hospitals across the US (via 9to5Google). Queries like “veterans hospitals near me” will be returned with a list of the eligible hospitals in your vicinity. Users can broaden their search if no veterans hospitals are available in their area.
