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 Planned Parenthood, the women's healthcare and abortion provider
that operates the facility, sued the state health department in June
for its refusal to renew the St. Louis clinic's license. The state
court judge presiding over the case referred the matter to the
Administrative Hearing Commission, an independent arbiter.
The hearing, which is expected to last several days, began on Monday
with opening statements from both sides and testimony from state
witnesses including Donna Harrison, a doctor and director of the
American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
Missouri Solicitor General John Sauer said in his opening statement
that the state has "very serious concerns about the safety of
patients" at the clinic after at least four patients had failed
abortions there.
Planned Parenthood representatives said the state's effort to shut
down the clinic was politically motivated and that the clinic should
remain open to guarantee the constitutional right of the 1 million
women of child-bearing age in Missouri to receive an abortion.
"Our doors are open today, they'll be open tomorrow, and we will
continue to fight like hell for access to make sure that access to
comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care continues to be a
fundamental right for women here in Missouri," Planned Parenthood of
St. Louis President Yamelsie Rodriguez told reporters.
Missouri health officials earlier this year declined to renew the
clinic's license on the grounds that it failed to meet their
standards, which included mandatory interviews with several
physicians involved in what the health department said were multiple
life-threatening abortions at the clinic.
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Planned Parenthood officials have said they do not directly employ
all the clinic's staff and cannot force them to give interviews. The
organization has said the state's effort to close the clinic is
politically motivated, which the state denies.
Abortion is one of the most divisive issues in the United States,
with opponents citing religious beliefs to declare it immoral, while
abortion-rights activists say the procedure is legally protected and
that bans rob women of control over their bodies and futures.
Missouri is one of 12 states to pass laws restricting abortion
access this year, some aimed at provoking a U.S. Supreme Court
review of the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that recognized a
woman's constitutional right to terminate her pregnancy.
Last week, Planned Parenthood opened an abortion clinic just 13
miles (21 km) from the St. Louis clinic in Fairview Heights,
Illinois, capable of treating up to 11,000 patients per year.
"While we continue the fight to maintain access in Missouri, we are
excited to expand our abortion services in Illinois," Colleen
McNicholas, chief medical officer of Planned Parenthood's southwest
regional chapter, said in a statement.
(Writing by Gabriella Borter; Editing by Scott Malone, Bill Berkrot
and Richard Chang)
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