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To: lurqer who wrote (38531)	2/27/2004 12:48:52 AM
From: lurqer	Respond to of 89467

US Justice Dept. Seeks Hundreds of Medical Records The U.S. Justice Department has subpoenaed Planned Parenthood for the confidential medical records of hundreds of women as part of its defense against challenges to a federal law that bans a type of late-term abortion, the family planning organization said on Thursday. Attorney General John Ashcroft said this month the records were needed to find out whether the procedure, called "partial birth abortion" by its critics, was medically necessary. "We believe that this is a sweeping invasion of medical privacy. Ashcroft has subpoenaed hundreds of confidential medical records and we're taking every step within the law to resist this," said Elizabeth Toledo, a spokeswoman for the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Planned Parenthood said subpoenas had been served on Tuesday at six of its locations -- Los Angeles, San Diego, New York, Washington, Kansas City and Pittsburgh. ABC News reported that the subpoenas demand hundreds of women's medical records for all surgical abortions performed in the past year at six Planned Parenthood affiliates. Ashcroft has asked that he medical records be turned over to the government on March 5, ABC reported. The Justice Department had no immediate comment. In efforts to defend against a number of lawsuits over a federal ban on certain late-term abortions, the Justice Department also has sought to obtain confidential medical records on abortion from several university hospitals. Abortion rights supporters challenging the ban in court have argued that, among other things, the controversial procedure can be medically necessary. The lawsuits were brought in November immediately after President Bush signed the law banning the abortion procedure. A federal judge in New York said the information sought by the Justice Department could be turned over. But another federal judge in Chicago came to a different conclusion and ruled that would violate federal and state privacy laws. Ashcroft told reporters on Feb. 12 the Justice Department was "sensitive" to the issue that an individual's medical records should be kept private. He said the department agreed to take "every precaution possible" and to "mask much of the identifying characteristics of the patients" and "to expunge the identifying names." reuters.com lurqer