Longtime San Diego-area abortion clinic closes its doors
Hygeia, an abortion clinic in Poway, an affluent suburb of San Diego, has closed. The clinic, located inside a medical building at 15725 Pomerado Road, was operated by Dr. Michael Easter. For more than 20 years it was the site of frequent pro-life protests, public rosaries and sidewalk counseling.
While the exact date Easter's abortion center closed is not available, a phone call to the clinic by California Catholic Daily was answered by a recording referring the caller to Easter's email address and a post office box. No additional information was provided. Pro-lifers in San Diego said the clinic closed "sometime in the last few months."
During a pre-Christmas visit to San Diego, Operation Rescue president Troy Newman congratulated area pro-lifers for the closing of Easter's clinic, a Dec. 20 posting on Operation Rescue's web site reported. "Newman reminded them that San Diego was the first test ground for cutting-edge Operation Rescue tactics," said the web site posting. "In a ten-year time span of pro-life ministry led by Newman in conjunction with local groups, over 40 abortionists quit killing in San Diego County and 18 abortion clinics closed. Today that trend is continuing."
According to the California Medical Board web site, Easter has no current disciplinary proceedings pending against him. He graduated from the University of Texas Medical School, Galveston branch, in 1968 and has held a medical license in California for the last 38 years.