Florida DOH requests revocation of abortionist’s license for violating waiting period

A Florida abortionist who repeatedly violated state law by committing abortions without adhering to a mandated 24-hour waiting period may lose her medical license.

Dr. Candace Cooley previously worked as an abortionist at the Center of Orlando for Women. That abortion business, along with others, received fines in 2023 for violating the state’s waiting period law; in Center of Orlando’s case, 193 abortions were committed without adhering to the waiting period. According to Florida Phoenix, it now appears those 193 abortions were all committed by Cooley, resulting in the Florida Department of Health’s (DOH) request that the Florida Board of Medicine (BOM) revoke Cooley’s license. The DOH made the request even though last month Administrative Law Judge James H. Peterson III said Cooley should simply pay a $10,000 fine and receive a reprimand.

“The Board [of Medicine] should send a clear message to Respondent and every other physician in Florida that knowing and complying with the laws governing their practice is not optional, and serious breaches of this duty will be met with serious consequences,” DOH Chief Andrew Pietrylo Jr. wrote in an exception to Peterson’s recommended order.

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Florida law requires abortionists to wait at least 24 hours between an initial patient consultation and committing the abortion procedure. Cooley has been charged with one instance of “failing to perform any statutory or legal obligation placed upon a licensed physician” for committing the 193 abortions between April 25 and May 7, 2022, without implementing the waiting period.

Cooley’s attorney has called the DOH’s request “extreme” and “retaliatory.” However, Pietrylo of the DOH says that Cooley’s actions presented “significant potential harm” that warrant the revocation of her license.

“Respondent’s violation was inherently severe because it deprived women of their right to make a fully informed decision about whether to terminate their pregnancy,” he said. “It also exposed the women to significant potential harm — even if no actual harm resulted. These patients proceeded with a medical procedure that could lead to excessive bleeding, infection, organ perforation, adverse reactions to medications, and even death, without having the full amount of time required to consider these risks.”

The Florida Board of Medicine is scheduled to discuss Cooley’s case on December 6.

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