The Iowa Board of Medicine has decided to allow Planned Parenthood of the Heartland to continue using a video system to provide abortion pills to women in rural areas, reports Tony Leys for the Des Moines Register. The system, the first of its kind in the nation, allows a physician in Des Moines to deliver the pills to patients in remote clinics around the state, writes Leys. The doctor reviews each patient's records, speaks to her for a few minutes via videoconferencing, then pushes a computer button that opens a drawer in front of the patient. The patient reaches in the drawer to retrieve the pills, then takes the first dose while the doctor watches. She takes the rest of the pills at home, where she has an induced miscarriage.
The national anti-abortion group Operation Rescue complained to the Iowa board that the practice did not meet the requirements of state law. The board deliberated the case in a closed session, then told Operation Rescue that it would not sanction the Planned Parenthood doctor. Jill June, president of Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, said the system is used by other medical specialists to treat rural patients. "It would be turning the clock backwards and really discriminating against people who want and need health care but don't happen to live in urban areas," June said. (Read more)
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