Court Costs May Force Tiller Associate Ann Kristin Neuhaus to Drop Appeal

Ann Kristin Neuhaus, an associate of late-term abortionist George Tiller, was recently stripped of her medical license after she was found to have given improper mental health exams for teenaged girls seeking late-term abortions with Dr. Tiller. Neuhaus challenged the ruling in an attempt to get her medical license back, but things don’t seem to be going in her favor. State regulators have required that she post a bond of almost $100,000 to cover the board’s costs when the board pursued sanctions against her.

If Neuhaus cannot post the bond, her lawsuit to regain her medical license will basically be over. And while Neuhaus is calling no fair, the board’s not backing down, as the AP reports:

Kelli Stevens, the board’s general counsel, said it simply wants to protect its ability to recoup costs associated with Neuhaus’ case. Stevens noted the board’s $4.3 million annual budget is financed with fees collected from the health care providers it regulates.

Stevens said Thursday that costs from Neuhaus’ case “shouldn’t be borne by licensees who did nothing wrong.”

In June, the board ratified an administrative judge’s finding that Neuhaus did not perform adequate mental health exams on 11 patients, ages 10 to 18, before referring them in 2003 to Tiller’s clinic in Wichita for late-term abortions. Neuhaus provided second medical opinions required by Kansas law for such procedures.

Pro-aborts are angry about this as well, of course. They’re claiming that it’s not fair that Neuhaus has to pay these court costs, but the reality is, being an abortion provider does not exempt you from the finances of filing a lawsuit – especially when said abortion provider, Dr. Neuhaus, was proved to give substandard care.

This is the doctor who, in addition to shoddy mental health exams (consisting of nothing more than yes/no questions in a computer program), was accused of a forced abortion, poor patient care, and shoddy record-keeping. Neuhaus’ trial shows that Dr. Tiller was performing illegal late-term abortions and that she was complicit in the criminal act.

Considering all of that, why should the board give her a free pass? The Kansas State Board of Healing Arts is standing up to this woman, and good for the board. Women and babies alike need to be protected from the likes of Ann Kristin Neuhaus, who has been found to give horribly substandard care. Neuhaus may be willing to stop at nothing to get her license back and go back to butchering women and babies, but thankfully, the KSBHA isn’t going to let that happen without a fight.