Part 2: How the politics of abortion protects bad clinics

Saletan writes of having "seen a story like the one in Philadelphia before." It happened two decades ago in Florida. The political stakes were higher, and none of the doctors involved was as bad as Gosnell. But much of what's documented in the Philadelphia report—unsanitary conditions, sloppy anesthesia, unlicensed practitioners, busted emergency equipment, lax record-keeping, and a patient's death—was found in the Florida clinics, too. And when legislators tried to step in, abortion rights advocates stopped them. . . . 

The Florida Abortion Council, known as FLAC, included 18 of Florida's 48 providers. Thirteen of its members, along with seven other Florida clinics, belonged to NAF, the national clinic alliance. Both groups followed rigorous safety standards. NAF devoted three meetings each year to discussing medical precautions and innovations. FLAC held its own meetings on quality control. It was the only such statewide organization in the country, and its leaders were duly proud. Its members were mission clinics, and virtually all of Florida's independent feminist providers belonged to it.

Twenty-three clinics in Florida belonged neither to NAF nor to FLAC. Some had failed to meet the requisite standards. Others hadn't bothered to apply. . . . In south Florida, conscientious providers privately blacklisted the bad clinics and avoided referring women to them. Many referred patients only to NAF or FLAC members. But making this private rating system public seemed unthinkable. As little as the good providers trusted the bad ones, they trusted the government less. Nothing would make them break their silence. Not even a woman's death. Slate