DALLAS -- The state is taking new action against Planned Parenthood.
Thursday morning representatives from the Office of the Inspector General went to Planned Parenthood clinics in Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio.
State investigators haven't said why representatives went to the clinic. However, in a news conference Thursday afternoon, Kelly Hart, a spokeswoman with Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas, said the state has requested administrative records that include the addresses of their employees.
Hart said state investigators requested "thousands of pages of documents that are in nearly a dozen health center and secure medical storage locations throughout Central and North Texas. The request for documents includes unprecedented and unnecessary information such as the home addresses of all employees."
At about 2:45 p.m. Thursday, Hart said the request includes records from over the last five years and are due in 24 hours.
"Please know this, Planned Parenthood complies with all state laws and regulations," she said. "Protecting the confidentiality of our patients and employees is paramount. We will do everything that we can to ensure their confidentiality, even while we cooperate with the state's request."
Investigators with the Texas Health and Human Services Commission's investigative arm delivered requests to Planned Parenthood facilities in all three cities asking for Medicaid records, billing information and personnel information, according to Planned Parenthood officials. A request delivered to a Dallas facility included request for files from clinics in Austin and Waco.
Earlier this week, Texas cut off Medicaid funding to the provider in the wake of those controversial undercover videos that appear to show workers negotiating the illegal sale of fetal tissue for a profit.
Planned Parenthood denies those allegations and released the following statement on Thursday:
"Governor Abbott's political grandstanding is on full display this morning. Representatives from the Texas Office of Inspector General showed up at Planned Parenthood health centers in Houston, Dallas and San Antonio looking for an excuse to take health care away from thousands of women and men who rely on Planned Parenthood for preventive care -- but what they will see is professional, compassionate and quality health care. Despite their efforts to distort the truth, health care -- no matter what -- is what happens at Planned Parenthood."
The organization says almost 13,000 Medicaid patients were seen at Planned Parenthood clinics in the year 2014.
"Due to previous defunding by the Texas Legislature targeting Planned Parenthood' patients, other statewide, federally funded programs have been dismantled or diminished, including the Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening Program, the Title X program, and the entire Medicaid Women's Health Program," read the statement. "Due to these politically motivated efforts, tens of thousands of women have been cut off from their trusted provider and access to preventive health care from cuts and restrictions put in place from outrageous legislation in recent years."
The Texas Tribune contributed to this report
