A video released on Wednesday by the Center for Medical Progress alleges that Planned Parenthood used false accounting practices when budgeting income from fetal tissue sales.
The video includes footage of Planned Parenthood's director of research, Melissa Farrell, talking about the way it budgets in the money from fetal tissue sales, according to The Washington Times.
"We had two levels of invoicing for them. We had it worded as 'per consent,'" Farrell said, describing a fetal tissue deal. Farrell explained that "per consent" was the phrase the organization used in its budget process in place of "per specimen" for fetal tissue.
The video was released at the same time that David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt, who were involved in making the videos, were in a Texas court facing charges related to their investigation, the Associated Press reports. The duo was indicted in January by a Harris County grand jury after the two created false driver's licenses for their investigation. The grand jury cleared Planned Parenthood of any misconduct.
Planned Parenthood Executive Vice President Dawn Laguens pointed out that 12 other states have also cleared the organization of any wrongdoing in an opinion piece for USA Today.
Rep. Marsha Blackburn, chairwoman of the House's Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives, released the following statement:
"The comments in this video by an employee of a large abortion provider are deeply disturbing and seem to demonstrate a willingness to obfuscate and hide their true intentions. The Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives is examining these issues and this new video, once again, raises more questions about the medical procedures and business practices used by entities involved in fetal tissue procurement. Our panel intends to follow the facts where they lead us."
There are now 12 videos from the group who used hidden cameras to "catch" Planned Parenthood, according to the Washington Times.
