COLUMBUS, Ohio — The lawyer for an Indiana physician who has discovered herself on the heart of a political firestorm after revealing the story of a 10-year-old woman who traveled from Ohio for an abortion stated Thursday that her consumer offered correct therapy and didn’t violate any affected person privateness legal guidelines in discussing the case.

The video featured is from a earlier report.

Lawyer Kathleen DeLaney issued the assertion on behalf of Indianapolis obstetrician-gynecologist Caitlin Bernard the identical day Republican Indiana Lawyer Normal Todd Rokita stated his workplace was investigating Bernard’s actions. He provided no particular allegations of wrongdoing,

A 27-year-old man was charged in Columbus, Ohio, on Wednesday with raping the woman, thus validating the existence of a case whose veracity drew preliminary skepitism by some media shops and Republican politicians. The pushback grew after Democratic President Joe Biden expressed empathy for the woman through the signing of an govt order final week geared toward defending some abortion entry within the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court docket’s ruling overturning the constitutional safety for abortion.

Bernard’s lawyer stated the doctor “took each applicable and correct motion in accordance with the regulation and each her medical and moral coaching as a doctor.”

“She adopted all related insurance policies, procedures, and rules on this case, simply as she does day by day to supply the very best look after her sufferers,” DeLaney stated in an announcement. “She has not violated any regulation, together with affected person privateness legal guidelines, and he or she has not been disciplined by her employer.”

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Bernard reported a June 30 remedy abortion for a 10-year-old affected person to the state well being division on July 2, throughout the three-day requirement set in state regulation for a lady youthful than 16, in accordance with the report obtained by The Indianapolis Star and WXIN-TV of Indianapolis underneath public data requests. The report indicated the woman looking for the abortion had been abused.

DeLaney stated they’re contemplating taking authorized motion towards “those that have smeared my consumer,” together with Rokita.

Some Republicans who’ve backed stringent abortion restrictions imposed in Ohio after the Supreme Court docket ruling, together with Ohio Lawyer Normal Dave Yost, initially questioned whether or not the story relayed by Bernard to the Indianapolis Star newspaper was actual. After telling Fox Information on Monday that there was not “a whisper” of any proof supporting the case’s existence, Yost stated his “coronary heart aches for the ache suffered by this younger little one” and his investigative unit stands able to help police within the case.

On Thursday, Yost confronted intense backlash for his public statements, together with a declare that medical exceptions within the Ohio “fetal heartbeat” abortion ban would have allowed the woman to obtain her abortion within the state.

Apparently in response, he launched a “authorized explainer” detailing the regulation’s medical exceptions. Abortion rights advocates and attorneys stated the regulation’s medical exceptions – for the lifetime of the mom, dire dangers of bodily hurt and ectopic pregnancies – wouldn’t have protected an Ohio physician who carried out an abortion for the woman from prosecution.

Rokita stated his investigation would come with whether or not Bernard adopted Indiana state legal guidelines on notifying authorities about suspected little one abuse and reporting an abortion for a lady youthful than 16 to the state well being division, and whether or not something she stated to the newspaper violated federal medical privateness legal guidelines.

The U.S. Division of Well being and Human Providers wouldn’t say whether or not any privateness regulation complaints had been filed towards Bernard, nor would Indiana College Well being, the place Bernard is an obstetrician. However the HIPAA Privateness Rule solely protects most “individually identifiable well being info,” the division’s web site stated.

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The prosecutor for Indianapolis, the place the abortion happened, stated his workplace alone has the authority to pursue any felony costs in such conditions and that Bernard was being “subjected to intimidation and bullying.”

“I feel it is actually harmful when folks in regulation enforcement begin attempting to launch a felony investigation primarily based on rumors on the web,” Democratic Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears stated.

Bernard didn’t reply to e-mail and textual content messages despatched to her looking for remark.