CV NEWS FEED // Voices for Life is suing the state health department of Indiana over its decision to no longer release its abortion records to the public.
In a May 2 press release, Thomas More Society announced it had filed a complaint on behalf of the pro-life organization in the Marion County Superior Court against the Indiana Department of Health and State Health Commissioner Dr Lindsay Weaver for violating the state’s Access to Public Records Act.
Thomas Olp, Thomas More Society Executive Vice President, stated in the release:
Voices for Life, other pro-life organizations and the attorney general’s office must be able to review individual records in order to ensure abortion providers do not ignore laws designed to protect Indiana women and children.
Indiana’s abortion industry has a history of health and safety violations. Those who run afoul of the law must be held accountable.
Voices for Life has vetted Indiana’s Termination of Pregnancy Reports against potential health and safety violations since 2022. Indiana law requires abortion providers to submit reports, without patient identifying information, of every terminated pregnancy each month “to ensure abortions are performed legally.”
“In reviewing these reports,” the legal foundation reported, “Voices for Life has discovered about 700 instances of illegal activity among abortion providers and filed complaints with the state health department and the attorney general’s office.”
The state health department began to withhold its records from Voices for Life in August 2023, citing confidentiality of patient medical records.
The department now only releases “reports of aggregated data” according to Thomas More Society, “which do not provide the necessary detail to identify potential violations or the licensed professional or facility performing the abortion.”
“Indiana citizens have a right to this vital information and to transparency in their state government,” Benjamin Horvath, Thomas More Society special counsel stated, adding:
By refusing to comply with Voices for Life’s request for access to public records, the health department is depriving citizens of their role in petitioning the attorney general to investigate cases that suggest terminating a pregnancy was unlawful.
