However, hospital claims that the OAG lacks jurisdiction to demand such records from the hospital, and that Washington’s “Shield Law” protects it from requests made by states that “restrict or criminalize reproductive and gender-affirming care.”
Hospital leaders affirm no Texas ties
While OAG extended its reach across state lines, the hospital has not, according to the hospital’s Chief Medical Operations Officer Dr. Ruth McDonald and two hospital senior directors.
Sham requests and overreach of authority
“The Demands should also be set aside because they are not bona fide investigation into
violations of the DTPA and therefore are not proper exercise of the Attorney General’s authority,” the lawsuit states. “The Demands are an improper attempt by the Attorney General to investigate and enforce recently-enacted [Texas] SB 14 against Seattle Children’s based on healthcare services that may have been provided by or at Seattle Children’s within the State of Washington.”
The lawsuit cites definitions made in Senate Bill 14 that restricts the law’s scope to Texas:
“Seattle Children’s is not (and cannot be) in violation of SB 14. The Demands are, therefore, an improper and ultra vires attempt to enforce SB 14 beyond the scope of the statute and beyond the authority of the Attorney General,” the lawsuit states. “The Attorney General, through the Demands for documents and information…is improperly attempting to investigate healthcare that did not occur in Texas.”
Along a similar line, the hospital’s attorneys claim that such an investigation violates the U.S. Constitution’s dormant Commerce Clause, which prevents States from enforcing “protectionist” laws that would erode a national marketplace