As it turns out, Governor Rick Scott's administration may have been a bit off-base in its claim that three Planned Parenthood clinics in Florida were performing abortions at later points in pregnancies than the Agency or Health Care Administration allows, and even admitted as much — or so we thought.
Last week, the AHCA demanded Planned Parenthood halt all second-trimester abortions at clinics in St. Pete, Naples and Fort Myers or face a $500 fine for each violation.
Turns out, no halting was needed.
In a letter penned by an AHCA attorney Tuesday, the state told the nonprofit it could continue performing abortions in those clinics. On Wednesday, though, the agency's attorney sent a letter telling the organization AHCA will still be investigating Planned Parenthood over possible violations.
The letter was in response to an injunction Planned Parenthood filed attempting to block the state from halting abortions at the clinics after an (perhaps dubious?) investigation led to allegations of illegal abortions.
Turns out, state investigators may have gotten the math wrong on what constitutes a first trimester. Like most things that suck, it has to do with periods.
The clinics allegedly performed abortions after the first 12 gestational weeks that define the first trimester. They were cited for conducting procedures up to 13 weeks and six days into a pregnancy.
Which obviously would look bad…unless you'r confusing the 12-week gestational definition with one defining the first trimester as comprising the first 14 weeks after the mother's most recent menstrual period.
And mix those up they did.
With AHCA's admission, Planned Parenthood will drop its court action.
“This concession by AHCA has removed the immediate necessity for an injunction and we will not pursue one at this time," Barbara Zdravecky, CEO of Planned Parenthood of Central and Southwest Florida said in a written statement Wednesday. "AHCA has agreed — as we have maintained all along — that, as long as the procedures performed are within 14 weeks from a woman’s last menstrual period (LMP), they do not exceed the authority under our licenses.
The investigation, courtesy of Scott, was a reaction to a series of viral videos a conservative group doctored to make it look like the women's healthcare nonprofit was selling — and profiting off — baby parts, when, in actuality, the organization donates aborted fetal tissue to important medical research with the mother's permission, and the nonprofit is then simply reimbursed for the costs associated with transport, etc.
But you and I knew that already, and odds are Scott (or at least some of his handlers) did, too.
“While we will of course cooperate with legitimate investigations, the public does not want elected officials spending time and money looking into bogus claims that are just part of a political agenda," Zdravecky said. "We hope that lawmakers in Florida will now turn their attention to helping more Floridians access care, not less.”
This article appears in Aug 13-19, 2015.