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A witness who testified that he had seen twin babies left to die in a pan when he worked in an abortion clinic came under intense questioning by lawmakers at a House Commerce subcommittee hearing last month. Dean Alberty, whose job was to procure fetal body parts for a distribution company, told members of the Health and Environment Subcommittee that some of the fetuses he obtained for research were not actually dead. But Alberty's credibility was challenged when he admitted to making false statements under the pseudonym "Kelly" in a videotape for Life Dynamics, a prolife group. He also accepted more than $4,000 in checks from the organization. The March 9 hearing was an effort by GOP lawmakers to investigate allegations that abortion clinics and medical research and distribution firms had collaborated to illegally profit from the sale of fetal body parts. While it is illegal to buy and sell human fetal tissue for profit, companies can be paid "fees for services."Rep. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) says he believes hundreds of medical research companies have purchased fetal tissue at an inflated price. Coburn, who is a physician, says he plans to introduce legislation to establish payment and reporting requirements.

Our earlier coverage of trafficking in fetal parts includes " Human Commodities | The grisly business of trafficking in fetal body parts may soon face Congressional hearings" (Mar. 7, 2000). Listen to the hearings through the House's Heath and Environment Subcommitee site, which also offers the prepared witness testimony and member statements, but not the transcript of the hearings.World magazine called the hearings a " debacle" and Reuters called it " a rocky start."Earlier this week, The Dallas Morning News profiled Life Dynamics.ABCNews offers a transcript of its 20/20 report on fetal trafficking as well as related news stories.

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March (Web-only) 2000, Vol. 44