Following state Attorney General Chris Koster’s investigation that concluded St. Louis Planned Parenthood has not violated any laws in its handling of fetal tissue, state Sen. Jamilah Nasheed of St. Louis is calling on the University of Missouri to reverse its decision to end “refer and follow privileges” for a physician at Columbia Planned Parenthood.
Missouri law requires that abortion providers have privileges within 15 minutes driving time and/or be within 30 miles of the clinic. The university’s decision would end abortion services provided by Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri on December 1.
“The university should be above politics,” she wrote in a letter to MU chancellor R. Bowen Loftin, president Timothy Wolf, and MU Healthcare CEO Mitch Wasden. "This is a political stunt that flies in the face of the missions of both MU Health Care and the University at large. While this decision may score you points with a small group of loud extremists, your actions have far-reaching consequences for the futures of a much larger segment of our state’s population.”
Should the university not change its decision on “refer and follow,” Nasheed noted that she will use her position on the Senate Appropriations Committee "to examine ways to redirect funds to other organizations.”
Koster launched his investigation after videos were released in July by an anti-abortion group that raised questions about the handling of fetal tissue harvested during abortions and possible unlawful sale in other states. The St. Louis Planned Parenthood office is mentioned in one of the videos. Planned Parenthood contends that the videos are altered and edited.
Koster’s office reviewed documents over a 30-day period that traced disposal of fetal tissue and the chain of custody from surgical procedure to incineration. “The evidence reviewed by my investigators supports Planned Parenthood’s representation that fetal tissue is handled in accordance with Missouri law,” Koster wrote in his report. “We have discovered no evidence whatsoever to suggest that Planned Parenthood’s St. Louis facility is selling fetal tissue.”
Republican State Sen. Kurt Schaefer told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that Koster’s report was not thorough enough, adding that Senate hearings on the matter will continue. Schaefer, who is running for attorney general, said Koster did not interview witnesses and only looked at “a narrow window of time.”
GOP gubernatorial candidates Catherine Hanaway and Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder were also critical of Koster’s report. They support continuing the hearings of the Interim Committee on Sanctity of Life.
