Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Planned Parenthood Head Says Missouri's Claims That State's Last Clinic Had 'Deficiencies' Are Not Based In Reality
The Associated Press: Missouri Agency Cites Concerns At St. Louis Abortion Clinic
Missouri's health department said Wednesday that the license for the state's only abortion clinic is in jeopardy because of a litany of problems, including "failed surgical abortions in which patients remained pregnant" and concerns about patient safety. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services responded to the lawsuit filed a day earlier by Planned Parenthood that seeks to keep open the clinic in St. Louis. A judge on Thursday will hold a hearing on the request for a restraining order that would stop the state from its threat to not renew the license. (5/29)
The Hill: Missouri Governor Threatens State's Only Abortion Provider, Says It Broke Laws
Missouri Gov. Mike Parson (R) on Wednesday said that the state's sole abortion provider will be unable to perform abortions after Friday if it doesn't comply with an ongoing investigation into potential violations of state law. Parson said the Planned Parenthood clinic is suspected of breaking several state laws and regulations, including one that requires patients receive pelvic exams 72 hours before getting abortions. (Hellmann, 5/29)
KCUR: Planned Parenthood Asks Court To Keep Missouri From Closing Abortion Clinic
Lawyers for Planned Parenthood will ask a St. Louis Circuit Court judge to block Missouri health officials from using an investigation into a patient’s complaint to close the state’s only licensed abortion provider. Planned Parenthood went to court Wednesday to prevent the state Department of Health and Senior Services from denying a renewed license to Reproductive Health Services of Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region. But Judge Michael Stelzer rescheduled the hearing for Thursday, a day before the clinic’s license expires. (Fentem and Davis, 5/29)
CNN: Court To Decide Whether Abortion Services In Missouri Will End On Friday
An emergency hearing on this case originally was scheduled for Wednesday afternoon in the Circuit Court of St. Louis. But it was then postponed to late Thursday morning for reasons "outside everybody's control," said Judge Michael Steltzer. The court filing says the withholding of the license is another tactic in a years-long effort to "restrict abortion access and deny Missourians their right to choose abortion." (Ravitz, 5/29)
In other news on abortion —
The Washington Post: Prosecutors Push Back On Enforcing New State Abortion Laws
New state abortion laws likely to become bogged down in legal challenges face another potential obstacle: prosecutors who refuse to enforce them. The Associated Press reached out to nearly two dozen district attorneys across seven states, and several said they would not file criminal charges against doctors who violate the laws. Even a few who left open potentially charging doctors said they would not prosecute women for having an abortion, which some legal observers say could be a possibility under Georgia’s law. (Thanawala, 5/30)
The Associated Press: Indiana Fetal Remains Law Could Boost Costs For Abortions
Planned Parenthood officials expect greater expenses for abortions in Indiana following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholding a state law requiring burial or cremation of fetal remains after an abortion. Abortion opponents cheer the court’s decision as “recognizing the dignity of unborn children” even as the justices sidestepped other provisions of the Indiana law that could have blocked some women from undergoing abortions because of fetal gender, race or disability. (Davies, 5/29)
Des Moines Register: Iowa Judge Planned Parenthood Sex Education Abortion Provider Cuts
An Iowa judge has temporarily blocked enforcement of a law that would have cut off Planned Parenthood's federal sexual education funding. Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the law earlier this month. It prevents Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, the Iowa chapter of the national group, from accessing two federal grant programs for sex education funding because the group performs abortions. No state or federal dollars pay for abortions in Iowa. (Gruber-Miller, 5/29)
