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Thursday, March 24, 2005

Law - Local dispute over patient records makes national news

Last week two related stories were published, both on Tuesday, March 15th. The Indianapolis Star published a story by Michele McNeil headed "Planned Parenthood, state spar over files: Attorney general seeks dozens of patient records." It began:

Attorney General Steve Carter is demanding the medical records of 73 low-income patients from Planned Parenthood of Indiana as part of an investigation that critics say tramples on Hoosiers' privacy rights.

Planned Parenthood filed a lawsuit Monday in Marion Superior Court to prevent Carter's Medicaid fraud unit from seizing confidential medical records of patients under the age of 14 who sought reproductive health care from its clinics. * * *

Carter, in a statement, said he's using the powers of the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit to investigate whether Planned Parenthood's clinics are following the law by reporting cases of children who are having sex before they turn 14. In Indiana, sexually active children under that age are considered to be victims of rape or molestation.

Carter said his office is "obligated under federal and state statutes to investigate allegations of abuse and neglect by Medicaid providers, which include hospitals, nursing homes and other medical clinics that receive Medicaid reimbursement from the state." * * *

Carter's investigation and Planned Parenthood's response push Indiana into the middle of a developing national debate over government access to reproductive health records.

Last month, two abortion clinics in Kansas sued to stop that state's attorney general from seeking medical records of women who have had late-term abortions.

And last year, federal courts blocked then-U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft's push to get medical records of women who received late-term abortions, also called "partial-birth" abortions.

Also on March 15th the Washington Post published a lengthy story headlined "Kansas Abortion Clinics Fight Data Request: Criminal Inquiries Trump Issues of Privacy, State Says." Some quotes:
Two Kansas clinics are opposing efforts by the state's attorney general to obtain the medical records of more than 80 women who received late-term abortions in 2003.

The attorney general, Phill Kline, has argued that he is looking for evidence of child rape and violations of a state law restricting abortions performed after 22 weeks of pregnancy. But clinic supporters contend Kline is on a fishing expedition that invades patients' privacy and is making a calculated effort to hamper the clinics from performing abortions. * * *

Last year, former U.S. Attorney General John D. Ashcroft sought abortion records from hospitals and Planned Parenthood clinics in several states as part of the government's defense of the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act, which Congress passed in 2003. The Justice Department asked for hundreds of files, with names blacked out, saying it was necessary to learn whether late-term abortions were medically necessary.

U.S. District Judge Charles P. Kocoras, deciding a challenge by Chicago's Northwestern Memorial Hospital, was among several judges who ruled against Ashcroft. His opinion was upheld on appeal. He called abortion "one of the most controversial decisions in modern life."

"An emotionally charged decision will be rendered more so," Kocoras wrote, "if the confidential medical records are released to the public . . . for use in public litigation in which the patient is not even a party."

Today the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette is carrying an AP story by Sam Hananel that reports:
WASHINGTON – Planned Parenthood officials Wednesday denounced prosecutors in Kansas and Indiana for trying to seize patient medical records from clinics, calling the actions a coordinated attempt to intimidate health care providers and patients.

“What we are witnessing today is an alarming and escalating attack on medical privacy across the country,” said Karen Pearl, interim president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. “Politicians with rigid anti-choice agendas are trying to rip apart the covenant that we have as providers with our patients.”

Pearl said the latest efforts are part of a trend by politically motivated, anti-abortion prosecutors who want to scare women away from seeking care that is protected by the Constitution.

The actions in Kansas and Indiana follow an unsuccessful attempt last year by then-U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft to subpoena abortion records from several Planned Parenthood affiliates as part of the government’s defense of a new law barring certain late-term abortions.

Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline, an ardent abortion opponent, has denied any political motivation. He is demanding two abortion clinics turn over the medical files of about 90 women and girls, saying he needs the material for an investigation into child rape and potentially illegal late-term abortions.

The clinics are fighting Kline’s request on privacy grounds and have asked the Kansas Supreme Court to block the subpoenas or restrict their scope.

In Indiana, Planned Parenthood sued the state last week to stop the seizure of its clients’ medical records, saying investigators were on a “fishing expedition,” possibly to identify the partners of sexually active 12- and 13-year-olds. The records do not cover patients seeking abortions, but other services.

The lawsuit filed in Indianapolis seeks temporary and permanent injunctions barring Attorney General Steve Carter and his Medicaid Fraud Control Unit from searching the private records of clients at 40 Planned Parenthood clinics across the state. Like Kline, Carter says he is investigating reports of sexual abuse against minors.

Finally, today in the Indianapolis Star is a column by Ruth Holladay titled "Quest for Planned Parenthood files firmly rooted in law."

Posted by Marcia Oddi on March 24, 2005 10:13 AM
Posted to General Law Related