UPDATED
Lawmakers Claim Emory Violating Open Records Act On Grady Abortions; Will Conduct Hearing This Month

(Updated at 9:20 a.m. on Nov. 15 with comment from Emory. New material highlighted.)

By Dick Pettys
InsiderAdvantage Georgia

(11/14/07) Georgia lawmakers ripped into Emory’s medical school at a Capitol news conference today for rebuffing their efforts to get records that might show whether taxpayer funds were involved in any way in some 2,800 abortions performed at Grady between 2001 and 2003.

Emory contends that as a private institution, it is not subject to the state’s Open Records Act and, therefore, can keep the records confidential. The lawmakers came to the news conference armed with an opinion from the Office of Legislative Counsel contradicting that view and arguing that the records must be delivered.

The lawmakers said they will convene a special hearing on the abortions-at-Grady issue on Nov. 29 to delve further into the issue. The new Grady CEO, Otis Story, stopped the abortion program shortly after taking office this summer.

All of Grady’s doctors come from either Emory or Morehouse School of Medicine. Emory in the past has promoted family planning fellowships at Grady as part of its marketing pitch to doctors-to-be.

“We’re not going away. We’re trying to get some answers on behalf of the taxpayers of Georgia,” said Rep. James Mills, R-Gainesville, who chairs the special House Ways and Means subcommittee that will conduct the hearing.

“Were taxpayer dollars being used to train doctors to perform abortions on poor, indigent women patients? That really is the matter at hand,” he said. “There are more questions than answers at this point, and one of the reasons that is so is Emory, I believe, is clearly in violation of the Open Records law right now

Click here for our previous story providing more background on this issue.

Mills said the issue isn’t whether abortion is legal under certain circumstances but rather whether taxpayer dollars were involved. “Taxpayer dollars being used to perform abortions is a clear violation of the law. Has that occurred or has it not occurred is what this institution has not been willing to present ...”

Federal law prohibits the use of federal money to perform abortions except in the case of rape, incest or the life of the mother.

He said, “What comes to question here is, do we know, out of those 2,800 abortions, what was the situation surrounding that, and we have yet to be provided any answers.”

Emory spokesman Ron Sauder issued this statement later:

“As we have said previously, Emory complies with all state and federal laws related to the provision of women’s health services at Grady. Many of the questions being addressed to Emory should better be directed to Grady Health System."

He added, “At this critical moment in Grady’s history we believe the time, attention and energy of elected officials would best be spent making sure Grady survives and ultimately thrives as a resource for patients throughout North Georgia.”

Rep. Melvin Everson, R-Snellville, said if the group is successful in obtaining the records and they show state and federal law has been violated, “we will, at that point, seek counsel from the AG’s office.”

Mills said it’s not about “piling on” Emory or Grady at a time the public hospital is in shaky financial condition, as some critics of this and other legislative initiatives have suggested.

“All of us as legislators support Grady Hospital. But at a time when we’re being asked to support them even more financially, certainly we’ve got to have a trust factor in place by them being forthcoming with this information that involves taxpayer dollars.”

The news conference came just a day after Emory and Morehouse, which provide all the doctors for Grady, issued a tough new letter calling on decision-makers to resolve the problem’s long-standing financial problems by the end of this year. They said they already are shopping for other venues to train their doctors, if needed. Click here for that story.

Emory’s medical school dean, Thomas Lawley, told Everson in a letter dated Nov. 2:

“Although Emory is a private institution not subject to the Open Records Act, and many of your questions are better directed elsewhere, please know: we comply with all state and federal laws relating to the provision of women’s health services and reimbursement for services at Grady Health System; Emory has a policy and a practice not to use aborted fetuses in scientific research; and the 1999 settlement to which you refer did not involve abortions.”

The opinion issued to legislators by the Office of Legislative Counsel said the Open Records Act applies to Emory. Here is an excerpt:

“When dealing with a private institution, the subsection provides that ‘records received or maintained by a private person, firm, corporation or other private entity in the performance of a service or function for or on behalf of an agency, a public agency, or a public office shall be subject to disclosure if received or maintained by such agency, public agency or public office.

“Since the records maintained by Emory are a part of the documentation of expenses for Grady, the records would appear to fall within the ambit of public records for the purposes of the Open Records Act. This is true regardless of Emory’s status as a private institution.”

The opinion noted that failure to comply with the Open Records Act is a misdemeanor and subject to a fine not to exceed $100. It also noted that the attorney general has power to enforce provisions of the Act.

Legislators could also swear out a criminal warrant for enforcement of the Act, but one lawmaker said: "No one wants to swear out a warrant on Dean Lawley, but the man is not above the law. He is playing with fire. He needs to obey the Open Records Act."

Co-signers of the letter requesting access under the Open Records Act to Emory's files on Grady abortions, besides Everson and Mills, were Reps. Charlice Byrd, Ed Setzler, Tom Graves, John Lunsford, Jeff Lewis, Barry Loudermilk and Martin Scott.