PHILADELPHIA, PA, April 2, 2013 (LifeSiteNews) – Pennsylvania’s abortionists have spent millions trying to comply with the state’s updated abortion center safety regulations, passed in the wake of the House of Horrors abortion-murder scandal, reports National Public Radio.
Five abortion clinics have closed outright since passage of the new laws, which require abortion facilities to meet the same standards as any other outpatient surgical center and undergo unannounced random inspections.
The saga of Kermit Gosnell, currently on trial for capital murder after members of his staff admitted to killing babies born alive in his clinic, disgusted the nation as details of his filthy West Philadelphia clinic were revealed by authorities in 2010. The FBI showed up at Gosnell’s clinic to question him about illegal prescription drug sales. What they found was much worse. Blood stains soaked the floors, heavily drugged women lay moaning in pain, and the clinic was ripe with the scent of urine. Flea-ridden cats roamed freely throughout the facility.
In the aftermath of the FBI’s grisly discovery, many wondered how Gosnell stayed in business for so long with a facility so decrepit. It turned out the clinic hadn’t had an inspection in 17 years.
“There were admitted failures in oversight at the department,” conceded Aimee Tysarczyk, press secretary for Pennsylvania's Department of Health, in an interview with NPR.
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Now, such failures should be less likely, since the law mandates at least one random inspection per year of every abortion facility in the state.
Additionally, abortionists have been forced to make major safety upgrades to their facilities to bring them up to the standards of real surgical centers by enlarging their operating rooms, installing hospital-grade elevators, widening hallways, and upgrading driveways to accommodate ambulances and stretchers in case of life-threatening complications requiring transport to a hospital. Other upgrades include hands-free sinks, washable ceilings and floors, and modern sterilization equipment.
After the new regulations were passed in 2011, abortionists cried foul, complaining that the costly upgrades would put them out of business. At the time of passage, all but one of the state’s 22 abortion centers fell short of the new standards, leading Operation Rescue leader Troy Newman to comment, “That fact alone speaks volumes to the shoddy conditions that exist at abortion clinics, not only in Pennsylvania, but across the nation.”
After requesting and receiving a six-month extension from the state, however, all but five abortion clinics in the state have made the necessary upgrades to stay in business.
“Overall the cost was about $450,000 to get two of our facilities into compliance,” Dayle Steinberg, CEO of Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania told NPR.
Central Pennsylvania Planned Parenthood CEO Suellen Craig also complained about the cost. “We’ve obviously had a lot of work to do to meet the requirements,” Craig told The Washington Times. “That’s been disruptive because it’s taken us a lot of time and money to make sure that we’re in compliance.”
Craig called the new regulations “burdensome.”