South Bend abortion clinic license not renewed

Abortion provider Dr. Ulrich "George" Klopfer and the clinic staff appealed the decision on June 29. The appeal will be heard before an administrative law judge in November, according to Ken Severson, spokesman for the ISDH. Severson said the clinic may legally operate until the November hearing.

If the license is ultimately denied, this will be the third clinic owned and operated by abortion provider Dr. Ulrich "George" Klopfer to stop providing abortions in northern Indiana. He halted abortion services at his Fort Wayne clinic in December 2013, and at his Gary clinic at the end of May.

The ISDH sent a letter to Klopfer, dated June 26, stating that the application for license renewal was denied after a recommendation from the Abortion Clinic Licensing Program. The letter cited a "history of non-compliance, ongoing non-compliance, untimely and unacceptable plans of correction and pending license revocation." Specifically, the letter referenced a June 3 inspection in which inspectors found evidence that medical abortions were taking place without requiring a woman requesting the procedure to wait 18 hours before having an abortion, as required by state law.

"The program believes these deficiencies provide further evidence of the clinic's inability to comply with and follow existing state law and that such behavior is an intentional and willful act," the letter stated.