Horizon Health pondered creating wider abortion network

Horizon Health Network president John McGarry is pointing to scarce resources and spaceasthe reasons a wider network of abortion services was not made available after the provincial government loosened regulations around abortions in January.

New Brunswick came close to establishing wider abortion availabilityin hospitals earlier this year, according to documents obtained through theRight to Information Actby the Globe and Mail and made public on Friday. (Horizon officials would notprovide CBC News with the now-public documents on Friday, but said they hope to do so next week.)

The 200 pages ofinternaldocuments show a group of doctors and hospital executives considered a proposal to provide hospital-based abortions in Moncton, Saint John and Fredericton.

Two days after their Januarymeeting, however, the decision was made to limit the provincially funded service toMoncton.

Then in February, theHorizon Health Network announced theMoncton Hospital wouldbe the single site for English language access to provincially funded abortions in the province, starting in April.

Speaking to reporters on Friday, McGarry said the Gallant government had nothing to do with determining where services would be offered.

The only directions we had fromgovernment were to take on the service.- John McGarry, Horizon Health Network president

"The only directions we had from government were to take on the service. There was no direction as to location or number of sites," said McGarry.

"It was up to us to decide one site, two sites, 10 sites, so we did explore the four regional hospitals."

McGarry said the Fredericton hospital was discounted because of "a congestion issue," as there isn't enough room in the Dr. Everett ChalmersRegional Hospital to provide abortion services.

Theissue with the Saint John Regional Hospital is Horizon wants to use available space there for other purposes.

"We have other options for that space we want to consider and we may need that space in the very near future to do some redevelopment of our (intensive care units)," he said.

The Miramichi Regional Hospital said it wasn't interested in providing abortions.

"It's up to individuals to provide that service and they have to be willing and in their conscience, and in their consideration they need to be very comfortable with that. We don't force this."

Financial considerations also were a factor as Horizon determined it would cost between $800,000 and $1 million at each site.

"Quite frankly, the issue of cost was an important factor," said McGarry. "It just didn't see to make an awful lot of sense to spend $2 million in two extra sites for a service that might be able to be provided in one site.

Frankly, I'm quite puzzled as to why people think we should have spent more money given the situation we're in.- John McGarry, Horizon Health Network president

"Frankly, I'm quite puzzled as to why people think we should have spent more money given the situation we're in. I think we came to a pretty reasonable conclusion."

In a Jan. 21email entitled "Confidential Family planning,"McGarrylisted the reasons for choosing the Moncton-only option, includingthe cost savings of a single site and the challenges of installing an expensive abortion clinic in an old emergency room at Saint John Regional Hospitala space that was also being considered as a new site for the intensive care unit.

"I will even add an eighth reason that is only sitting in the back of my head," wroteMcGarry. "SJ [Saint John] is a very significant Irish Catholic community and it was quite a surprise to me that the hospital physicians would even entertain the matter. Times have changed of course. But it was a thought that lingered in my head."

In January, the Gallant government removed the requirement for women seeking a provinciallyfunded abortion to have the procedure declared "medically necessary" bytwo doctors.

But it saidthe service would only be offered at the MonctonHospital, which would saveHorizon a minimum of $500,000a year.

The closure of the private MorgentalerClinic in Fredericton in July triggered a push to get the provincial governmentto relax its long-standing regulation that required the approval of two doctors for an abortion that was to be carried out in a public hospital, and to publicly fund abortions in private clinics, such as the MorgentalerClinic.

The issue got some traction in the provincial election campaign with Liberal Leader Brian Gallant committing to improving access to abortion. However, when the new policy was revealed in January, there was no provision to fund abortions in private settings.

While the change was viewed as a half-victory by pro-choice campaigners, it was opposed by anti-abortion groups, such as New Brunswick Right to Life, which was a staunch opponent of the Morgentaler Clinic throughout its existence and has long-opposed tax-funded abortion on demand.