State Senate Republicans subpoenaed documents last November about the St. Louis Planned Parenthood’s disposal of fetal tissue. Planned Parenthood handed over those files in May and Senate officials had until June 20 to review them.
The subpoenas followed the work of a Senate committee launched last summer after several videos were released alleging that the organization illegally profited from the sale of fetal tissue.
Senate Republicans say a press conference today will cover the initial results of the investigation into Planned Parenthood’s business model and methods by which it disposes of fetal tissue and whether any state dollars have been directly used in such activity.
Senator Eric Schmitt (R-Glendale) calls the investigation a fact-finding mission without any preconceived notions of what the subpoenaed material included.
Democrats say the investigation is political and a waste of state money. They blame Senator Kurt Schaefer (R-Columbia) for orchestrating the subpoenas and for ending the partnership between the University of Missouri and Planned Parenthood’s Columbia clinic.
Ten other states launched investigations into Planned Parenthood following the release of videos last summer. All of those states say no wrongdoing was found.
