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DHEC Oversight of Abortion Clinics

On 29 May 2013, I drafted a letter to the Legislative Audit Council requesting them to review if DHEC was regulating abortion clinics according to state law. Several House members added their names to the letter. A copy can be found at SCLAC DHEC Audit Letter.

The audit results were released this week. They may be found here.

I was congratulated on my efforts to determine if DHEC was following state law. Looking for congratulations was not the purpose of the letter and I did not feel like celebrating when I saw the results. The summary notes the missed inspections, lack of accurate reporting and failure to provide a way for patients to complain of bad treatment. The comments about our lack of utilizing ultrasounds to their full extent to prevent abortions is most disturbing.

The lack of DHEC oversight of South Carolina abortion clinics condemns the mother and unborn child to a shadowy world of potentially unsafe and painful procedures.

You can be assured that those of us who requested this audit will take the steps necessary to correct DHEC’s failures in this matter.