Toledo clinic, safe in budget, target of Ohio AG filing

— Just b e fore COLUMBUS the Ohio S e nate vote d to pull a provision from the state b udge t on T hursday aime d at c losing the last ab ortion c linic in T ole do, the state ’s top lawye r was moving in a T ole do c ourt to shutte r the fac ility anothe r way, c ourt re c ords show.

A ttorne y Ge ne ral M ike De W ine ’s motion against Capital Care Ne twork of T ole do was time -stampe d just b e fore 4 p.m.T hursday.A b out 90 minute s late r, the R e pub lic an-c ontrolle d S e nate surprise d onlooke rs and approve d a b udge t re vision from De moc ratic S e n.S andra W illiams ofCle ve - land re moving language that would have e ffe c tive - ly c lose d the c linic b y limiting the distanc e to hospitals use d for e me rge nc y patie nt transfe rs to 30 mile s.T he c linic ’s transfe r hospital is ab out 50 mile s away in A nn A rb or, M ic higan.

In the filing, De W ine se e ks to e xpe dite the c linic ’s c losure afte r the Ohio De partme nt ofH e alth orde re d its shutdown last ye ar b ase d on the lac k of a le gal patie nt-transfe r agre e me nt.H e argue s the T ole do fac ility has b e e n ope rating outside the law.

T he state ’s last ope rating b udge t inc lude d provisions re quiring amb ulatory surgic al fac ilitie s, whic h inc lude ab ortion c linic s, to have suc h a patie nt-transfe r agre e me nt with a loc al hospital for e me rge nc ie s and b arre d pub lic hospitals, like one that’s loc al to the T ole - do fac ility, from e nte ring into suc h agre e me nts. Capital Care had gotte n around the Ohio re stric - tion b y using an out-ofstate hospital.T he H e alth De partme nt said the arrange me nt wasn’t le gal.