A judge Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit over access to terminated pregnancy reports. The lawsuit challenged the Indiana Department of Health’s decision to stop releasing the individual reports in December over patient privacy concerns.
The individual terminated pregnancy reports contain information about Hoosiers who received legal abortions. It includes information about the person's pre-existing medical conditions, age, location, marital status and reason for the abortion. Medical providers fill out these reports, and if they don’t, they could lose their license and face misdemeanor charges.
Anti-abortion group Voices for Life sued IDOH in May to get access to these individual reports. The department still releases data on abortions statewide quarterly.
Indiana’s public access counselor issued an informal opinion in support of protecting the records, which the state attorney general disagreed with.
In his ruling, Judge Tim Oakes said the law — as written — protects these documents from Access to Public Records Act (APRA) requests “regardless of personal beliefs, electoral pressures, or potential non-judicial consequences or outcomes.” APRA requests include an exemption for medical records.
READ MORE: Expert: Legal discussion on terminated pregnancy reports in complicated 'gray' area
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During a hearing on the dismissal, attorneys for IDOH said the reports meet the definition of a medical record in state law. It’s a written document; it’s in the possession of a provider — which includes IDOH; and includes information on the treatment or diagnosis of a patient.
Melanie Garcia Lyon, Voices for Life executive director, said in a statement the organization will appeal the decision and is “in this for the long haul.” She called access to the individual reports “a crucial role in ensuring Indiana’s abortion laws are enforced.”
Lauren is our digital editor. Contact her at lchapman@wfyi.org or follow her on Twitter at @laurenechapman_.