State employees fired, all PA abortion clinics under microscope in wake of Gosnell carnage
Read backstory here.
From CNN this afternoon:
Calling state oversight of an abortion clinic where at least one mother and 7 viable babies died “despicable,” PA Gov. Tom Corbett fired a half-dozen employees and announced changes Tuesday in 2 departments.
The Dept. of Health and the Dept. of State have primary oversight over such clinics.
“This doesn’t even rise to the level of government run amok. It was government not running at all. To call this unacceptable doesn’t say enough. It’s despicable,” Corbett said.
Seven employees from the Dept. of Health, as well as the Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs, a branch of the Dept. of State – are no longer employed by the state, having either resigned or been terminated since the situation came to light, Corbett said in statement.
In addition, 4 other former employees named in the grand jury investigation had previously resigned….
Corbett announced changes in the Dept. of Health and Dept. of State, including new controls and conditions “designed to protect the health and safety of women who use these facilities in the future.” Changes include cross-checking files, establishing searchable databases of inspections, improving training, making correction plans and inspecting abortion clinics annually.
The silver lining of the Gosnell massacre is now all PA abortion mills will be under much more scrutiny, which is great. Would that all states take these sorts of proactive measures against abortuaries. From the New York Times, this afternoon:
Gov. Corbett ordered the state’s abortion clinics to be inspected at least once a year and said clinics that fail to meet basic state health standards would be closed, at least temporarily.
PA abortion clinics will also have unannounced inspections, including during evenings and weekends. The results will be posted online.
Gov. Corbett said clinics would be fined up to $1,000 a day if any incident deemed serious – defined as causing to a patient to require additional medical treatment – is not reported immediately to the state. After any report, state inspectors would be required to perform an on-site investigation within 5 business days, officials said.
If violations are found during inspections, the governor said, abortion clinics must file a detailed plan to correct any problems within 10 days. If they do not do so, they will be subject to another inspection and a second 10-day correction period. If the clinic still fails to comply, its operations will be suspended.
LifeNews.com has more details on specific new state regulations for abortion mills.
Details on who was fired from the Associated Press:
A Corbett aide identified the employees who left the state work force on Friday but would not specify who had been fired and who resigned.
Corbett said some people have been suspended while they investigate further. Corbett press secretary Kevin Harley later added that some people involved in the probe remain on the job because they “have certain rights” as union members….
Dept. of State supervisory lawyer Chuck Hartwell said he was given a letter that said his services were no longer required. Hartwell… worked for the state for 12 years….
Basil Merenda, who was secretary of state at the end of Gov. Ed Rendell’s administration, said he was terminated on Friday. Like Hartwell, he was told his services were no longer needed.
Merenda, a former deputy attorney general in NJ… who had most recently been working as a hearing examiner, said the state Board of Medicine, on which he served, never got a case against Gosnell from the agency’s prosecuting lawyers.
“Do you think for one minute that if I had known what was going on with the Gosnell complaints that I would have tolerated that? [JLS comment: Yes.] Come on,” Merenda said. “You can’t say I was involved in the Gosnell matter when I had absolutely no input.”
The other 4 who resigned or were dismissed on Friday, according to Harley, were Dept. of State attorney Mark Greenwald and Dept. of Health senior counsel Kenneth Brody, chief counsel Christine Dutton and deputy secretary for quality assurance Stacy Mitchell….
[HT: Andy Moore at Star-Studded Super Step]
Jill Stanek is a nurse turned speaker, columnist and blogger, a national figure in the effort to protect both preborn and postborn innocent human life.
I hope Jill is right and they start scrutinizing and cracking down-we know there iare many Gosnells our there. What will never know is exactly how many infants have been brutally murdered in the same manner and the evidence hidden. Gosnell had years under the protection of prochoice politics and the NAF, he isn’t the only one.
Sounds good to me, I too hope Jill is right.
I think that those who were fired have lots that they could tell us.
But I also think that making abortion clinics toe the line only cleans up their image and softens public perception of baby killing.
Jo, I agree, however Gov Corbett is pro life (which is why I voted for him!) However we need to make sure devils like Gosnell are put behind bars while we continue to fight the big fight.
The solution to unsafe abortions isn’t to abort children “safely” but to stop killing unborn children.
-Randy Alcorn
The solution to “unwanted” children is not to kill them but to want them.
-I am not sure who said that.
Maybe Randy Alcorn said that too!! :)
Agree
You are right Randy. We need to stop all abortionists. Gosnell did not whitewash his atrocities as some abortionists do but no abortion is better than Gosnell’s crime.
This is true and good point now that I think about it and you mention it. What is the difference between what Gosnell did and what Tiller and Carhart do except the location of the baby (in birth canal or out), cord cut or not, and maybe the instrument used?
NOTHING!!!!
The most important character in this pathetic story is the NAF inspector who saw the conditions and reported nothing. She needs to be arrested and charged as an accessory to murder. Then she should be offered a plea deal in exchange for dirt on other chop shops like Gosnell’s.
Then, when more atrocities come to light, NAF needs to be sued by every woman harmed as a result of NAF’s silence. That should put NAF out of business.
That’s how we’ll drain the swamp.
Dr. Nadal is right. Once the squeeze is on, the abortion workers will squeal. They are not people working for a righteous cause and they know it. They’ve based there lives on a horrific lie for personal gain. When the cards begin to fall there will be no more guessing how to go forward. The only problem will be deciding who is prosecuted next.
Go get ’em, Tom!