A small firm featured in several undercover videos on the procurement of aborted fetal parts abruptly cut ties with Planned Parenthood, Politico reported Friday.
The California-based StemExpress notified House and Senate committees Friday of the decision, according to the Politico report. The decision comes as the company was asked by the House Energy & Commerce Committee and Senate Finance Committee to explain its relationship with the women’s health organization.
StemExpress was known to have bought aborted fetal material from Planned Parenthood clinics.
The latest video from the anti-abortion activist group Center for Medical Progress featured a former employee of StemExpress, who alleged the company obtained blood or tissue samples without a patient’s consent. StemExpress strongly denied the allegations in a statement earlier this week, and said that it has done nothing illegal.
The company said the center’s undercover efforts would only “serve to slow the pace of life-saving medical research aimed at curing disease.”
So far the center has issued six videos and promises more are on the way.
StemExpress got a temporary restraining order that prevents the center from issuing any videos that feature top executives from the company. But a California state judge on Thursday blocked another request to access material obtained by undercover actors from the center.
The judge found that the request for discovery was unnecessary.
StemExpress is also seeking a permanent injunction that prevents the center from releasing any videos featuring current employees or facilities.
