The Indiana State Department of Health found no wrongdoing by Planned Parenthood clinics in the state in regards to the handling of fetal tissue donations after an investigation sparked by a shady anti-choice organization's heavily edited videos was completed.
Indiana Gov. Mike Pence -- a Republican who has long championed efforts to defund Planned Parenthood -- ordered an investigation by the Indiana State Department of Health in cooperation with the state's Office of the Attorney General on July 16, citing “the recent video referencing Planned Parenthood's alleged trafficking of aborted fetal tissue.” The move came just days after The Center for Medical Progress released a deceptive video claiming that Planned Parenthood was “selling aborted baby parts” that was roundly called out by the media for “show[ing] nothing illegal” and having selectively edited footage. The investigation was launched despite the fact Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky “does not participate in any tissue donation program.”
On July 30, Indiana officially cleared Planned Parenthood clinics in the state of wrongdoing, finding “no evidence of any laws being broken” in the handling of fetal tissue, according to an Associated Press report. Pointing to letters from the Indiana Department of Health to the clinics investigated which stated that the agency was “unable to find any non-compliance with state regulations” the report noted that “the complaint is closed”:
The Indiana Department of Health said in a statement Thursday that an investigation found no evidence of any laws being broken. Health department inspectors investigated the Indiana facilities on July 21.
Letters from the health department to the three Indiana facilities dated Tuesday and released to the media by Planned Parenthood said the agency had completed its investigation into the Planned Parenthood facilities that perform abortions in Indiana. The letters said the agency was “unable to find any non-compliance with state regulations. Therefore, no deficiencies were cited.” The letters say the complaint is closed.
The state has the authority to license and regulate abortion clinics and to inspect them, the Health Department said. Federal law prohibits the buying and selling of human body parts or trafficking in tissue from an aborted fetus.
Indiana's findings further underscore the flimsy nature of The Center for Medical Progress' claims and reinforce the fact Planned Parenthood has simply been discussing legal reimbursement for fetal tissue donation.
UPDATE: On July 29, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey announced that they had also “found no evidence that” Planned Parenthood affiliates in the state were participating in fetal tissue donation programs and that the organization's health centers are “are fully compliant with state and federal laws regarding the disposition of fetal tissue ... There is no evidence that PPLM is involved in any way in the buying or selling of tissue.” The investigation was requested by state Representative James L. Lyons Jr. (R), who called for an examination of Planned Parenthood based on the Center for Medical Progress' deceptively-edited undercover videos.