Punishment for a doctor who aborted a 10-year-old girl
2022.12.01 02:47
Punishment for a doctor who aborted a 10-year-old girl
Budrigannews.com – In a case that became a flashpoint in the debate over access to the procedure, Indiana’s attorney general on Wednesday asked the state’s medical board to discipline an Indiana doctor who performed an abortion on a 10-year-old Ohio rape victim.
Dr. Caitlin Bernard was accused by Republican Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita of “violating a patient’s privacy rights” and the obligation to report child abuse to Indiana authorities immediately.
Even though public records indicated that Dr. Bernard promptly reported the abortion as required, Rokita has been investigating whether Dr. Bernard followed state law requiring doctors to report abortions.
His office asked the state’s medical licensing board to decide what Dr. Bernard should be punished with, which could be anything from a letter of reprimand to her medical license being permanently revoked.
Dr. Bernard’s attorney, Kathleen DeLaney, said in a statement on Wednesday that her client had discussed the girl’s case “within the bounds of applicable privacy laws” and had complied with all reporting requirements.
DeLaney stated that “Mr. Rokita’s Administrative Action filed today is clearly a last-ditch effort to intimidate Dr. Bernard and other providers of abortion care.”
According to the doctor, the child was referred to her for an abortion just three days after Roe v. Wade, the 1973 case that had guaranteed federal abortion rights, was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Following the ruling in June, Ohio was one of the states that quickly imposed strict restrictions on abortion, sometimes without making any exceptions for cases of rape or incest.
The girl’s compliance with the Indiana statutory requirement that she be no more than 22 weeks pregnant is not in question by the attorney general. The girl was three days over the Ohio limit of six weeks when Dr. Bernard learned of the situation.
Dr. Bernard and Rokita began a bitter legal battle after learning of the 10-year-old’s case.
This month, Dr. Bernard and her medical partner filed a lawsuit against Rokita, demanding an end to investigations involving patients and their abortions. The lawsuit said that Rokita’s investigation was a “sham” and that it broke the rules that it had to be based on merit, be narrowly focused, and be kept secret.
According to Dr. Bernard’s lawsuit, the subpoenas she received from the attorney general were based on complaints from individuals who had only heard about the case on the news and repeated the false claim that Dr. Bernard had not submitted a report.
