BORDERLAND

Key hearing postponed on fate of abortion clinic

2/11/2014

A hearing at the Ohio Health Department that would decide the fate of the last abortion clinic in Toledo has been postponed.

The Capital Care Network of Toledo hearing before an appeals panel has been continued and will not be held on Feb. 18, said a health department spokesperson. The reason for the delay of the hearing was not disclosed.

Since it is not a full-service medical facility, the Ohio Department of Health requires Capital Care to have a transfer agreement with a hospital in case of complications from an abortion procedure, but Capital Care’s transfer agreement with the University of Toledo Medical Center expired July 31.

Capital Care cannot renew its transfer agreement with UTMC, the former Medical College of Ohio, because of provisions in Ohio’s most recent budget that bar publicly funded hospitals such as UTMC from entering into transfer agreements with abortion clinics.

If the abortion clinic is forced to close its doors, Toledo would become the largest city in the state without a provider.