Who Wants to Jack Up Some Fake Pro-Life "Research"?
In John Lewis's honor, it's time to start some good trouble
There is a “study” currently being circulated to skew public perception about what OB/GYNs actually believe when it comes to abortion care. This is problematic as one of the biggest obstacles to care already is stigma. The irony though is that over 60% of the American public supports access to abortion in some or all circumstances. So with that, this moment also brings opportunity. On this 5th anniversary of the passing of civil rights icon, John Lewis, it’s time to start some “good trouble” and we need your help. Let’s dive in…
Last week, OB/GYNs across the U.S. started receiving a suspicious “research” survey in their personal email inboxes. The survey was circulated by the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (AHM) and their sidekicks at the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists (AAPLOG). If AHM rings a bell, it should. This is the same group who brought a case to the Supreme Court to strip mifepristone (the medication abortion drug) off the market. The two groups organized the survey in an attempt to gather data on OB/GYN attitudes toward abortion. They want to bolster bullshit claims that the medical community doesn’t support abortion care and instead supports...conservative ideology???
The “study” is being led by College of Medicine professor, Hector Chapa, at Texas A&M who used his formal university affiliation within the research design. Chapa recently resigned from ACOG criticizing them for their unapologetic support for abortion care. He is vile.
Academic research typically must be approved by an institutional review board (IRB) when it involves human subjects (such as this survey). There is no evidence that this survey has IRB approval from Texas A&M or any other institution affiliated with its authors. What’s crazier is it appears to be open to anyone with the link. There is no verification that respondents are even OB/GYNs. Even more concerning: the groups claimed they got their contact list from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). But ACOG said absolutely not and issued a cease and desist letter. (LOL.) So not only is the research unethical, it may have been distributed using misappropriated or illegally obtained data.
Here’s where you come in: since this “study” lacks any serious guardrails, it’s wide open to public… participation. If they don’t care about research standards, then they shouldn’t mind if a few thousand people with strong opinions about reproductive freedom log in and share their “OB/GYN expertise” too. We think Texas A&M might also like to hear from you too.
VPNs on, folks. Find your call to action below.
Why This Matters to You
Bad faith actors are weaponizing fake research to influence policy and court cases - this survey is likely a setup for another anti-abortion legal stunt.
It threatens evidence-based medicine, especially when rogue surveys try to misrepresent the views of OB/GYNs - the very people who *actually* provide abortion care.
It’s a privacy red flag: these groups somehow obtained personal emails, possibly violating data use laws and consent norms.
It’s a propaganda tactic, not a genuine inquiry. They’re trying to manufacture public opinion, not measure it.
You can fight back by exposing the sham, sharing the truth, and - if you feel so inclined - submitting a few “creative” responses of your own.
What You Can Do
Take the survey and tank the data. Use a VPN, get creative with your credentials (you’re now Dr. Jane Uterus, MD, OB/GYN from Anchorage), and flood the responses with pro-reproductive health answers. If their data is junk, let’s make it unusable junk: https://ahmsurvey.com/survey/
Post publicly that this “study” is being run by anti-abortion activists with no ethical oversight. Use screenshots and redirect people to ACOG’s actual research on what OB/GYNs believe. Don’t tag or link to AHM/AAPLOG because we don’t want to give their accounts oxygen.
Contact Texas A&M and demand clarification regarding Hector Chapa’s use of the university’s affiliation in his research. Ask whether the university is aware of and officially supports this study. If so, demand documentation confirming IRB approval. It would be highly unethical for Texas A&M to allow any human subjects research to proceed under its name without proper oversight and approval. You can contact the Dean of the School of Medicine here.
This isn’t just about a bad survey. It’s about protecting the truth from those trying to twist it. Let’s make sure their next “study” gets the only peer review it deserves: ridicule.
Find us @GEMMA_Talks, @evexplains, @pariphrased
Did the survey—what a load of crap.
My email: I’m a concerned physician writing today regarding a survey that’s been circulating under the name and affiliation of Texas A&M’s School of Medicine. The survey, led by Dr. Hector Chapa, claims to assess OB/GYN attitudes about abortion. It’s being promoted by the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (AHM) and the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists (AAPLOG), groups known for opposing abortion access and for pushing misleading narratives under the guise of medical legitimacy.
There are several serious red flags:
No IRB approval appears to have been obtained, despite this being human subjects research. There’s no indication that it has gone through any ethical review process.
The survey is open to anyone with a link, with no verification that respondents are OB/GYNs. That makes the data scientifically useless, at best, and intentionally misleading, at worst.
The contact list may have been obtained unethically. The groups behind the survey claim to have received emails from ACOG. ACOG has already issued a cease and desist letter denying any involvement, which raises serious questions about privacy violations and data misuse.
Dr. Chapa is using his Texas A&M affiliation to lend legitimacy to the survey, even though he has a clear ideological agenda. He resigned from ACOG over its support for abortion access and has aligned himself with anti-abortion legal activists.
This “study” is not legitimate research and could be used to misrepresent the views of OB/GYNs and influence public policy or court decisions. It’s deeply troubling that Texas A&M’s name is attached to it in any capacity.
If the university did not approve or endorse this research, I hope you’ll consider issuing a public statement to that effect. It’s critical that academic institutions uphold basic research standards, especially when pseudoscience is being used to attack evidence-based reproductive care.