BREAKING: Planned Parenthood in Bedford Heights Found Improperly Disposing of Patient Information, Biohazardous Waste
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Allie Frazier
DATE: Wednesday, July 7, 2021 PHONE: 614-547-0099 ext. 304
COLUMBUS, Ohio- Today, Ohio Right to Life, along with Right to Life of Northeast Ohio and Citizens for a Pro-life Society, announced the discovery that the Planned Parenthood facility located in Bedford Heights, Ohio had improperly disposed of potentially confidential information and medical and hazardous waste in violation of the law. Since this situation was first presented to Right to Life of Northeastern Ohio in June, these three organizations have collaborated in filing complaints regarding the apparent violations with numerous federal and state regulatory agencies.
“Abortion facilities are supposed to follow the same health and safety regulations as every other ambulatory surgical facility in the state. These violations were discovered on several occasions, and the facilities should be held accountable,” said Denise Leipold, executive director of Right to Life of Northeast Ohio.
The medical and hazardous wastes discovered included but were not limited to: bloody surgical sheets, urine and blood samples, and human tissue. Per state and federal law, these items are required to be in secured containers marked as hazardous waste. The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency is actively investigating these violations, which are believed to pose a threat to the health and safety of both the environment and the Bedford Heights community.
Additionally, the confidential patient information of 23 Planned Parenthood clients was found on items such as specimen containers, lab reports and pre-surgical instruction sheets. The federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) states that entities are not permitted to simply abandon anything with protected health information or dispose of it in dumpsters or other containers that are accessible by the public or other unauthorized persons unless the information has been rendered essentially unreadable, indecipherable and cannot otherwise be reconstructed prior to disposal in the trash. The federal Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights is currently investigating Planned Parenthood concerning these possible violations.
“The Planned Parenthood abortion center in Bedford Heights has demonstrated a disregard for community safety and patient confidentiality by its improper disposal of bio-hazard waste and numerous in-tact patient names tossed in its dumpster,” said Monica Migliorino Miller, of Citizens for a Pro-life Future. “This abortion facility needs to be called to accountability. Just because Planned Parenthood is an abortion clinic doesn’t mean it gets a pass. The mere fact that just a one-time search of the trash container revealed substandard medical practice indicates this is the usual protocol for Planned Parenthood of Bedford Heights. This clinic needs to be investigated and penalized and we are looking to the proper Ohio agencies to do just that!”
“It’s no surprise that Planned Parenthood’s calloused treatment of human life extends beyond the babies they are paid to kill,” said Allie Frazier, Director of Communications at Ohio Right to Life. “Planned Parenthood is now putting women’s confidential medical records and the health and safety of the Bedford Heights community at risk. Regardless of what Planned Parenthood may think, they are not above the law. Bedford Heights deserves better than a facility that’s only priority is maximizing their abortion business, no matter the risk that poses to their community’s heath and wellbeing. Ohio Right to Life will do everything within our power to hold Planned Parenthood accountable for their actions.”
Earlier this summer, Right to Life of Northeast Ohio, Ohio Right to Life and Citizens for a Pro-life Society announced via a joint press conference that the remains of an unborn child, believed to be 17 weeks gestation, along with what appeared to be confidential medical information and biohazardous waste were found in a dumpster behind Northeast Ohio Women’s Center. This, along with the potential violations at Planned Parenthood, marks the second documented incident involving the alleged improper disposal of medical waste and patient information at an Ohio abortion facility this year. Right to Life of Northeast Ohio, Ohio Right to Life, and Citizens for a Pro-life Society will continue working with local, state, and federal agencies to hold these abortion facilities accountable.
To read the press release regarding the findings at Northeast Ohio Women’s Center, click here.
To watch the joint press conference regarding the findings at Northeast Ohio Women’s Center, click here.