Annapolis, MD, March 6, 2013 (OperationRescue) — Prompted by the death of a third trimester abortion patient of LeRoy Carhart’s on February 7, 2013, seventeen members of the Maryland House of Delegates have sent a formal letter to the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) seeking clarification of the state’s new abortion clinic licensing regulations that went into effect last year.
The letter, dated February 28, 2013, raises questions about why the death of Jennifer Morbelli of complications from an abortion at 33 weeks did not trigger the immediate suspension of the license of Germantown Reproductive Health Services (GRHS) where Carhart conducted Morbelli’s abortion.
“Specifically, if not a patient’s death, what is the trigger for immediately suspending the license of a surgical abortion facility under COMAR 10.12.01.17, in order to protect the public,” the letter asked.
In addition, the House Delegates questioned why a previous complaint filed in November, 2012, concerning illegal dumping at GRHS has not yet prompted an investigation and inspection of the clinic.
Operation Rescue confirmed earlier that GHRS was never inspected to verify that the clinic met licensing requirements, nor had it been inspected by the time of Morbelli’s death.
The third concern addressed in the letter is a number of surgical abortion clinics operating openly in Maryland that have never obtained licensure. House members want to know how the illegally operating abortion clinics are being addressed by the DHMH.
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Operation Rescue and the Maryland Coalition for Life have confirmed that at least five abortion facilities are continuing to do business illegally without proper licensure. Those abortion businesses include:
- Metropolitan Family Planning (Gaithersburg)
- Women’s Health Care Center (Gaithersburg)
- Women’s Health Care Center (Bethesda)
- Femi-Care Surgical Center (Baltimore)
- Gynemed Surgical Center (Baltimore)
Complaints against these facilities were filed on February 13, 2013, yet all five clinics continue to do abortions in violation of the law.
“It does no good to have laws for the protection of the public if those laws are not enforced. We again call on the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to take the concerns of the House Delegates and the public more seriously before someone else dies,” said Troy Newman, President of Operation Rescue and Pro-Life Nation.
House Delegates that signed the letter to the DHMH include Nicholous Kripke, ranking member of the House Health and Operations Committee, and Kathy Atzali, (MD Dist. 4-A), who has separately asked for a “complete and transparent” investigation into code infringements at GRHS and is insisting that Carhart be held accountable for Morbelli’s death.
Operation Rescue has also filed two complaints asking for the immediate suspension of Carhart’s medical license by the Board of Physicians and for the filing of criminal charges against Carhart for second degree murder due to patient abandonment that showed a reckless disregard for Morbelli’s life.