An Indianapolis doctor who spoke publicly about providing an abortion to a 10-year-old rape victim could face disciplinary action as state attorneys tear her up in a Thursday hearing that could change her future as a doctor.
The doctor, Caitlin Bernard, was accused by Republican Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita of failing to report the child abuse to state authorities.
“No doctor has been so brazen in pursuing his own agenda,” state prosecutors told the board of Bernard.
Bernard is also accused of violating federal patient privacy laws by telling a member of the media about her treatment of the child, who is from Ohio.
The doctor has defended her actions from the start and told the state’s Medical Licensing Board — the panel that will ultimately determine her fate — that she complied with Indiana’s reporting requirements by notifying social workers of child abuse hospital.
The board heard arguments from both sides over whether Bernard should be punished, including having his license revoked, but took no action.
Dr. Caitlin Bernard has been accused by Republican Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita of failing to report child abuse to state authorities.
Bernard spoke publicly about an abortion case involving a 10-year-old rape victim
Rokita filed a complaint against Bernard last summer after speaking to the press about the case and on Thursday she faced a disciplinary board
Bernard told the panel that Ohio was already investigating the child’s rape and that privacy laws were not violated because she did not release any identifying information.
Indiana Deputy Attorney General Cory Voight said “there has been no case like this before the board.”
“No doctor has been so brazen in pursuing his own agenda.”
Voight argued the panel needed to address what he called a “gross violation” of the patient’s privacy, in addition to her alleged failure to notify the Indiana Department of Children’s Services. and rape law enforcement.
Bernard’s lawyer, Alice Morical, told the council that her client had reported cases of patient abuse several times a year.
Voight asked Bernard why she told a reporter about the Ohio girl’s case, then discussed the case in more detail in further media interviews.
“I think it’s extremely important that people understand the real impacts of this country’s abortion laws,” Bernard replied.
“I think it’s important for people to know what patients will be going through because of the legislation that’s being passed, and an assumption doesn’t have that impact.”
The Indianapolis Star’s story about the girl’s case sparked a national political outcry last summer in the weeks following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, who later enforced an Ohio law banning abortions after the sixth week of pregnancy.
Following the article, some media outlets and GOP politicians falsely suggested that Bernard made up the story, until a 27-year-old man was charged with rape in Columbus, Ohio.
Dr. Tracey Wilkinson, left, pediatrician at IU School of Medicine, and Dr. Caroline E. Rouse, maternal-fetal medicine physician at IU School of Medicine, line up outside a room conference to support Dr. Caitlin Bernard on Thursday
Dr Caitlin Bernard, left, sits between attorneys John Hoover and Alice Morical for the disciplinary hearing
The Indianapolis Star’s story about the girl’s case sparked a national political outcry last summer in the weeks following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. wade
Rokita’s complaint asked the licensing board to impose “appropriate disciplinary measures”, but did not ask for a specific sanction.
Counsel took no action during the hearing.
Last summer, amid the explosive wave of attention the case was receiving, Rokita, who is pro-life, called Bernard an “abortion activist.”
Bernard fired back at Rokita’s multitude of accusations, saying, “I think if Attorney General Todd Rokita hadn’t chosen to make this his political stunt, we wouldn’t be here today.”
The Indiana Board of Directors, before which this case is being tried, is made up of six doctors and a lawyer who was appointed GOP Governor Eric Holcomb.
The panel will vote to impose sanctions after several hours of testimony. Indiana state law gives the board the authority to issue a letter of reprimand or to suspend, revoke, or place on probation a physician’s medical license.
Bernard had previously failed in his attempt to block Rokita’s investigation. Despite the failure, an Indiana judge wrote that the attorney general committed “clearly unlawful violations of state privacy laws with his public comments about the medical professional’s investigation.”
