Carafem (FemHealth USA, Inc.), the abortion business that built its brand on being a ‘spa-like’ experience and once marketed abortion pill as “missed period” pills, is partnering with the now-closed virtual abortion pill dispensary Choix, Inc. A press release issued in October of 2023 announced the partnership.
“Choix (pronounced “Choice”), the first telehealth clinic to offer asynchronous abortion care in California, will cease its virtual operations on October 31st, 2023, following three years of delivering safe, affordable, patient-centered sexual and reproductive healthcare to over 8,000 patients across six states,” read the release.
Choix was founded in 2020 by “engineers” as well as “nurse practitioners” according to Ms. Magazine. These included Cindy Adam and her husband Mark, Lauren Dubey (who formerly worked at University of California San Francisco and Planned Parenthood), and Dr. Aisha Wagner (who also worked for Planned Parenthood doing abortions).
“We opened up mailing mifepristone through Honeybee Health pharmacy. We also received a grant from Plan C to help develop the Access Delivered provider guide to offering telemedicine abortion,” Adam once told Ms. Magazine.
Choix Partners with Carafem after three “costly” years
The October 2023 announcement claimed Choix was “delighted” about the “partnership” but complained that marketing its business was “costly.”
“Choix strongly believes in the importance of individual autonomy in decisions concerning their bodies, families, and futures. As part of its transition and ongoing commitment to reproductive healthcare, Choix is delighted to announce its partnership with the esteemed team at carafem, offering its patients a referral to a trusted reproductive healthcare provider,” the release stated.
Melissa Grant, Chief Operating Officer of FemHealth USA/Carafem, stated in the release, “We are thrilled to join forces with Choix in our shared commitment to delivering exceptional reproductive healthcare.”
Carafem founder applauds Choix partnership (Image: LinkedIn)
“Despite its growth and pioneering work in public health and direct patient care, the stigma and politics surrounding abortion care posed significant fundraising challenges. Additionally, the censorship of health advertisements related to sexual health information for women and underrepresented genders made patient outreach challenging and costly,” the release claimed.
Carafem’s connections to Bill Gates
Carafem is the public face of FemHealth USA, Inc., the U.S. division of the Bill Gates-funded global abortion pill company: DKT International, which distributed 6.1 million abortion pill combi-packs in 2023 alone.
DKT was highlighted in a Bloomberg.com report last year when the media outlet discovered that potentially “shoddy” abortion drugs manufactured by the Delhi-based Synokem Pharmaceuticals Ltd could be making their way into the United States from DKT. The allegation was denied by DKT leadership.
“Some DKT abortion medication kits made by Synokem, part-owned by Boston-based private equity firm TA Associates, are now entering the US, even though they haven’t been approved by the Food and Drug Administration,” Bloomberg claimed. “The kits, which contain misoprostol and mifepristone, are being purchased through underground online pharmacies that have no affiliation with DKT…”
WASHINGTON, D.C. – JULY 1: A framed and signed note from legendary abortion provider and advocate Dr. George Tiller in the office of Melissa Grant at the headquarters of Carafem in Washington, D.C., on July 1, 2022. (Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/For The Washington Post via Getty Images)
DKT was founded in 1989 by Philip Harvey, who regularly funded DKT with money he earned from selling pornographic films and sex toys through his mail-order company, Adam & Eve. Harvey resigned as president in 2013 and later passed away in 2021. He was replaced by Christopher H. Purdy, who serves as DKT’s CEO as well as president of FemHealth USA (Carafem).
FemHealth USA operates under the name Carafem as a national abortion pill chain. FemHealth’s connection is confirmed by DKT’s financial audits with Carafem’s donation page, clearly writing that FemHealth USA is “doing business as carafem.” And according to an archived page from Carafem’s website, FemHealth was “established in 2013 as a 501c3 non-profit social enterprise to deliver early, safe abortion services and family planning products in the USA and to take advantage of new efficiencies, new technology, and new approaches in the delivery of care.”
Carafem was also part of Gynuity Health Project’s infamous telabortion trials, which led to the Food and Drug Administration’s decision to permanently allow abortion pill sales by mail.
Carafem’s latest (2023) annual report boasts DKT International as a major donor. Both Carafem (the public face of FemHealth) and DKT International have deep connections to some of the richest billionaire abortion philanthropists in the world and are funded by the Packard Foundation, which invested millions into the U.S. abortion pill manufacturer Danco as well as the generic manufacturer, GenBioPro.
DKT’s donor list boasts abortion philanthropists like the Buffett, Packard, Hewlett, and Gates Foundations.
DKT International US Division (FemHealth USA) is abortion pill chain Carafem
Carafem’s current leadership
According to their 2023 annual report, Carafem’s client base includes a majority of African American (40%) and white (40%) clients. Their clients tend to have a college or high school education and are generally in their twenties. Most of the clients also live above the poverty line.
In addition to Purdy, Carafem’s board of directors includes the aforementioned Chief Operations Officer of FemHealth USA Melissa Grant, who also sits on the board of the National Abortion Federation (NAF) and previously worked for Planned Parenthood of the Heartland.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – JULY 1: Melissa Grant, chief operating officer of Carafem, poses for a portrait at the headquarters of Carafem in Washington, D.C., on July 1, 2022. (Amanda Andrade-Rhoades/For The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Carlos Garcia, who also serves on DKT’s board, is a board trustee of Connecticut College and President of Eng-Garcia Properties, a group described by Garcia as “Washington DC Area’s most innovative real estate team.”
OBGYN and University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Medical Center professor Dr. Sara Newmann, an OBGYN listed as an Assistant Clinical Professor at University of California San Francisco’s Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health, which trains abortion providers and is funded in part by the taxpayer.
Others include Nicole Gray, Julie Stewart and Jennifer Tapper.
Carafem board and donors 2023AR
A majority of Carafem’s revenue comes from both clients (54%) as well as grant funding (44%) and some donations (2%).
The abortion chain’s donors mentioned in their 2023 annual report include the 128 Collective Foundation, the Collaborative for Gender and Reproductive Equality, the Conant Family Foundation, the Daily Kos, the Demartini Family Foundation, DKT International, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, The David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and The Women’s Fund of Greater Milwaukee.
The Carafem list also includes an “anonymous” donor, which is suspected by some to be the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, which in 2022 granted FemHealth USA over $1 million.
