US doctor reprimanded, fined for talking about child’s abortion

A doctor who drew national attention in the United States for revealing that she performed an abortion on a 10-year-old rape victim was reprimanded and fined by a medical board for violating patient privacy laws.

The Indiana State Medical Licensing Board found that gynecologist Caitlin Bernard violated privacy laws when she spoke publicly about the case without the consent of the patient or her guardian. It voted to fine her $3,000 while she could continue to practice her medicine.

During the nearly 13-hour hearing on Thursday, the board rejected two other allegations in the complaint filed by Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita, finding that Bernard had not violated any laws about reporting suspected child abuse and failed to stay abreast of relevant reporting and privacy laws. .

The board has not imposed any restrictions on her medical practice.

The case highlighted the sharp political divisions over abortion in the US, and the challenges health care providers face in the wake of last June’s decision by the US Supreme Court to overturn the precedent Roe v Wade that protected abortion under federal law. and leave the regulation to the states.

That decision triggered a law in Ohio that banned abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, before many women knew they were pregnant, and made no exceptions for rape or incest.

Bernard has consistently defended her actions and on Thursday told the board she was following Indiana’s reporting requirements and hospital policies by notifying social workers at the hospital about the child abuse — and that the girl’s rape was already under investigation by authorities from Ohio. Bernard’s lawyers also said she has not released any identifying information about the girl that would violate privacy laws.

The Indianapolis Star had cited the girl’s case in a July 1 article that sparked national political outcry weeks after the Supreme Court ruling.

Some news outlets and Republican politicians had falsely suggested that Bernard fabricated the story about the 10-year-old’s abortion, until a 27-year-old man was charged with the rape in Columbus, Ohio. At an event at the White House, President Joe Biden nearly shouted his outrage at the matter.

Dr. John Strobel, president of the medical board, said he felt Bernard was going too far in telling a reporter about the girl’s impending abortion and that doctors should be careful about respecting patient privacy.

“I don’t think she expected this to go viral,” Strobel said of Bernard. “I don’t think she expected this patient to get so much attention. It did. It happened.”

Bernard’s lawyer, Alice Morical, told the board on Thursday that the doctor reported child abuse of patients many times a year and that a hospital social worker had confirmed with Ohio child protection officers that it was safe for the girl to be with her mother to leave.

“Dr. Bernard could not have foreseen the atypical and intense attention this story received,” said Morical. “She didn’t expect politicians to say she made up the story.”

Amid the wave of attention for the girl’s case last summer, Rokita, who strongly opposes abortion rights, told Fox News he would investigate Bernard’s actions, calling her an “abortion activist acting like a doctor.”

Deputy Attorney General Cory Voight argued Thursday that the board should do something about what he called a “flagrant violation” of patient privacy and Bernard’s failure to notify the Department of Child Services and Indiana police of the rape.

“There hasn’t been a case like this before the board of directors,” Voight said. “No doctor has been so bold in pursuing his own agenda.”

Voight asked Bernard why she discussed the Ohio girl’s case with the newspaper reporter and later in other news media interviews instead of using a hypothetical situation.

Bernard called it “incredibly important” for the public to know the implications of the changing legal landscape.

“I think it’s important for people to know what patients are going to have to go through because of the legislation that’s being passed, and a hypothesis doesn’t have that impact,” she said.

During Thursday’s hearing, Rokita’s office ran a running commentary on its official Twitter account, with one post stating: “When Bernard spoke of the high priority she gives to legislation and public speaking, she did so at the expense of her own patient. This shows where her priorities lie as an activist rather than a doctor.”

Bernard objected to Voight, saying her choice to discuss the matter publicly led to the misconduct allegations.

“I think if the Attorney General, Todd Rokita, hadn’t chosen to make this his political stunt, we wouldn’t be here today,” Bernard said.

The Indiana board—with five doctors present and a lawyer who had been appointed or reappointed by Republican Governor Eric Holcomb—had wide leeway under state law that allowed it to issue a reprimand or suspend, revoke, or put on probation a doctor’s license.

The Ohio law that imposed a near-ban on abortion was in effect for about two months before being put on hold as a lawsuit was filed against it. Indiana’s Republican-dominated legislature passed a statewide abortion ban weeks after the Ohio girl’s case drew attention, but abortions are still allowed in the state pending a Supreme Court decision of Indiana on the constitutionality of the prohibition.

Bernard had unsuccessfully tried last fall to block Rokita’s investigation, though an Indianapolis judge wrote that Rokita was in “clearly unlawful violations” of state secrecy laws with his public remarks about investigating the doctor before filing the medical licensing suit against her.