JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. _ Missouri Gov. Mike Parson pushed back Wednesday against Planned Parenthood's attempt to seek a court order blocking the state from pulling the license of the abortion provider's St. Louis clinic, due to expire Friday.
"It would be reckless for any judge to grant a temporary restraining order ruling before the state has taken action on a license renewal," Parson told reporters during a news conference. "No judge should give special treatment to Planned Parenthood in this instance."
The license of the Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Louis�the state's sole abortion provider _ is set to expire Friday, and Planned Parenthood officials have said the state is refusing to renew it. On Tuesday, the clinic sued Parson, the Department of Health and Senior Services and the department's director, Dr. Randall Williams, in St. Louis City Circuit Court.
While Parson held a news conference in his Jefferson City office, a judge was set to hear arguments from Planned Parenthood attorneys on a motion for a temporary restraining order. However, the hearing was continued to Thursday morning.
If the judge does not intervene and the clinic's license isn't renewed before Saturday, Missouri will become the only state in the country that does not have a licensed abortion provider.
The main sticking point is a request by DHSS to interview seven physicians who have performed abortions at Planned Parenthood clinic. Five are not employed by Planned Parenthood and the organization said it doesn't have the authority to compel the physicians to comply.
"The state is insisting that seven doctors, including residents and fellows who are obtaining medical training, be subject to interrogation that could result in them losing their medical license or even be subject to criminal prosecution," Dr. Leana Wen, president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, told reporters Tuesday.
The request was prompted by "a patient complaint," that DHSS has not disclosed to Planned Parenthood, the lawsuit said. The license renewal hinges on the completion of the investigation, which Planned Parenthood called "unlawful."
In the news conference, Parson said there were "numerous deficiencies" found during the inspection but did not go into detail because he said the investigation was ongoing.
"We have always had that ability to talk to those doctors," Parson said.
Planned Parenthood has alleged that the investigation is political. It noted in its lawsuit that Parson, a Republican, signed a bill that would ban abortions after eight weeks of pregnancy last Friday.
Parson said the issues surrounding the renewal are not driven by his anti-abortion position.
"We should all agree that regardless of the number of abortion facilities every step should be taken to make sure all laws are followed for the safety and well-being of women's health care," Parson said.
Planned Parenthood has complied with all of the department's other requests and has provided plans to correct issues found in DHSS's annual inspection, which occurred in mid-March, according to the lawsuit.
In an interview, Williams said Planned Parenthood has corrected two "major" deficiencies, by submitting a plan which calls for the same doctor who reads Missouri's informed consent rules to perform the procedure. The plan also stipulates that pelvic exams would be performed 72 hours before in-clinic procedures.
As for the "patient complaint," Williams would not say whether the investigation was driven by the request of a patient or multiple patients. He did say that multiple investigations were opened based on findings during the clinic's annual inspection.
