An abortion practitioner who put women’s health at risk in Kansas is seeking to get out of paying fines associated with the state medical board stripping her of her medical license.
A Kansas judge ruled Friday that abortion practitioner Ann Kristin Neuhaus, whose medical license was stripped for gross negligence related to illegal late-term abortion referrals, will not have to post a bond for the $93,000 in fees she owes the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts (KSBHA) while she appeals the Board’s decision against her.
Neuhaus’ license was formally revoked in June by the Board based on a complaint filed by Operation Rescue’s Senior Policy Advisor, Cheryl Sullenger. The Board found that Neuhaus negligently determined that eleven girls, aged 10-18, were given shoddy mental health exams in 2003 that resulted in improper referrals for late-term abortions to George Tiller’s now-closed Women’s Health Care Services in Wichita.
“Neuhaus was found to have endangered the health of those 11 girls with what amounted to medical quackery. She knows there is no hope for her appeal to prevail. She is simply trying to dodge having to pay the financial consequences of her bad behavior. It is a shame that the judge in this case is going along with this charade,” said Sullenger. “Since she has showed no hint of remorse but has instead maintained a defiant and disrespectful attitude, she isn’t deserving of mercy from the court.”
Instead of posting a bond, the court will require Neuhaus to sign a statement promising to pay if her appeal fails. But Sullenger says the promise isn’t worth the paper it is written on.
The Board ordered Neuhaus to pay nearly $93,000, the cost of bringing the disciplinary action against her. Kelli Stevens, the Board’s general counsel, told the Associated Press that is it concerned that Neuhaus will never pay the Board and the cost of her case would then have to be absorbed by its budget, which is funded by fees from the legitimate doctors it licenses in the state.
“It would be unfair for them to bear the cost of her wrongdoing,” said Stevens.
Sullenger said 11 patient files obtained by former Attorney General Phill Kline during his investigations of abortion clinics were used to prosecute Neuhaus. Kline was publicly castigated for those investigations, and faces possible disbarment over trumped-up ethical violations related to them.
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Tiller was also facing a Board petition based on Sullenger’s complaint that was almost identical to the one that resulted in Neuhaus’ license revocation. She said he would likely have lost his medical license had a vigilante not killed him.
“The Neuhaus case proved Kline’s allegations that Tiller’s late-term abortion clinic was violating the law,” said Sullenger. “It is only because the offenses are now beyond the statute of limitations that Neuhaus isn’t facing criminal charges. While she plays the part of the victim, the truth is that she was a victimizer, and we must not lose sight of that and the harm that she caused as this case proceeds.”
