From: nyikos@math.scarolina.edu (Peter Nyikos)
Subject: MEET GEORGE TILLER, LATE-TERM ABORTIONIST, Part 1
Keywords: late-term, third trimester, abnormalities, bi-parietal diameter
Organization: USC  Department of Computer Science
Date: 14 Dec 92 23:29:16 GMT


   George Tiller is the Wichita abortionist who is one of the few U.S.
abortionists who specializes in late-term abortions, and is the one who
advertises this specialty most openly.  His clinic was the target of the 
Operation Rescue blockade of the summer of 1991 which made the national
news both because of the large number of people who participated in the
blockade and the long time the blockade lasted.

   This post is the first in a trilogy about Tiller, his clinic, and
his methods.  I will also post later on about the events of the summer
of 1991, centering upon Judge Kelly and the many un-named people involved
on both sides than on either Tiller or the OR leaders.

   First, a word about the expression "late-term".  Some people use it
synonymously with "third trimester," including _USA Today_ in an article
in which Tiller was credited with 10-12 "late-term" abortions each year.
However, Tiller and clinic spokeswoman Peggy Jarman obviously use it 
in a different way, possibly to mean "second and third trimester," 
as when Ms. Jarman said fewer than half of the 2,000 to 2,500 abortions 
done by the clinic were late-term; this would be a strange understatement
if the term meant "third trimester" since the clinic has never admitted
to even close to 100 third trimester abortions in any one year.  

  [Aside:  Note my avoidance of the sexist term "spokesman" above.  On
the other hand, writing "Jarwoman" did not seem like a good idea. :-)]

  The highest figure to which Tiller has admitted was about three dozen
third-trimester abortions per year, while Ms. Jarman has stated that
about 40 percent of the abortions performed by Tiller were second trimester
abortions.

  Readers should be aware, however, of indications that "third trimester"
does not mean the same thing to Tiller as it does to many people, and of
a fudge factor mentioned by Luhra Tivis, who worked for Tiller in 1988.

  I have before me a photocopy of a brochure used by Tiller's clinic,
Women's Health Care Services, which tells a bit about procedures, programs,
and costs.  It is specifically centered on "mid-trimester abortion care"
and gives admission criteria for two programs:

	ELECTIVE PROGRAM 
	   To qualify...the pregnancy must be 18 to 26 weeks in duration
	(46 to 67 mm BPD), and the patient must be mentally competent and
	generally in good health...Patients are usually admitted Tuesday
	or Wednesday morning, and released to return home the following
	Friday or Saturday morning.

	FETAL INDICATORS PROGRAM
	  To qualify...the pregnancy must be dated by sonography and
	have measurements within the guidelines of BPD 72mm or femur 
	length of 53mm.  The pregnancy must have documented evidence
	of developmental or genetic abnormalities and the patient should
	have been evaluated by amniocentesis, chromosome studies or
	in-depth ultrasound investigation.  Without this documentation,
	patients beyond 26 weeks will not be accepted into our program.

   Luhra Tivis, a pro-choice former NOW officer and former
employee of Tiller's clinic, wrote the following in a July 9, 1991 
letter to three Wichita councilmen: "Dr. Tiller measures the
BPD (bi-parietal diameter) at its narrowest point, instead of
at the usually measured widest point, leading to a BPD reading
by Dr. Tiller of, say, 24 weeks gestation, when the accepted norm
might be 26 weeks gestation--however, this method is not illegal,
but is currently just a matter of accepted practice."

   This statement by Ms. Tivis, coupled with the brochure statements above,
leads to the conclusion that the oft-repeated claim that there are fewer
than 100 abortions past the 24th week is essentially meaningless.  Dr.
Tiller clearly places the beginning of the third trimester at 26 weeks,
which is mathematically much closer to the truth than the usual figure of
24 weeks, and allows women below the 26 week mark into his elective
program, where they are lumped together with other women past the middle
of the second semester.  In fact, by Ms. Tivis's testimony, women below
the 28 week mark are probably routinely allowed into the elective program.
And that is assuming the measurements are done accurately; it is easy to
be a few millimeters off on a sonogram measurement.

   And, in fact, Ms. Tivis said the following in testimony before the
Kansas Senate Federal and State Affairs Committee on March 10, 1992:

"When I fully realized that Tiller is routinely aborting healthy babies
at 28 to 30 weeks, I was quite horrified and began to look for another
job.  When Tiller learned of my job search, he fired me."

   Another interesting feature of the Tiller brochure is that it speaks
of "developmental and genetic abnormalities" but does not use any such
qualifying adjective as "severe".  Would a cleft lip qualify?  How about
a sixth finger, such as Ann Boelyn, second wife of Henry VIII had?

[Aside. I cannot help wondering how different world history would have been had
Ann Boelyn been the victim of infanticide or abortion, or even if Henry
VIII had noticed the sixth finger early on in his acquaintance with her,
instead of being told about it on the day of the wedding, as actually
happened.  
After all, Ann Boelyn was the mother of Queen Elizabeth I of England.]

[End of Part 1.  Part 2 will get into the details of the abortion
procedures used.]

Peter Nyikos


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