In the opinion, Judge Edith H. Jones of the 5th Circuit criticized Sparks for being too dismissive of a report by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission s Office of Inspector General that served as the basis for booting the organization from Medicaid and revoking $3.4 million in funding. The report concluded Planned Parenthood had diverged from standards of medical ethics” based on the video footage, which was produced by the Center for Medical Progress, an antiabortion group.
Court rules against Planned Parenthood in Texas sting videos case, bringing it a step closer to getting defunded – The Washington Post
Sparks had all but crumpled up that report and thrown it in the trash. He noted that the people who led the report a lawyer and orthopedic sports-medicine surgeon had no background in reproductive health care, questioning how they would know whether medical standards were breached. In fact, when the inspector general initially recommended Planned Parenthood be defunded, he acknowledged he had not even reviewed all eight hours of the video footage, Sparks noted. He said the state health agency offered no evidence at all that it took steps to authenticate the sting videos.
But Jones, an appointee of President Ronald Reagan, said Sparks was wrong to make these judgments. She said Texas s report should have been given “deference over the outside testimony from Planned Parenthood s experts regardless of Sparks s opinions of the authors’ qualifications.
Sounds like the 5th Circuit was correct. Too bad for Planned Parenthood. And of course they’re selling baby parts, which they’re not supposed to do, you know. I’m not sure you have to be a “reproductive health” specialist to tell that; a surgeon would probably do. I haven’t seen these films, however.