An appointment list, taken by police at Morgentaler’s Toronto Harbord Street abortuary, showed that abortions – at $300 each – were scheduled once and sometimes twice every 30 minutes (according to police testimony, on October 23, at the Morgentaler trial). The day the Metro police raided the abortion clinic, 14 abortions were scheduled. For each abortion done, Morgentaler receives a $50 “consultation” fee; the doctor who does the abortion receives $75 and the remaining $175 goes to the holding company jointly owned by Morgentaler and his brother.
What does this all come to?
Taking 14 abortions a day as an average, the abortuary would perform 70 abortions a week (5 x 14). The doctor doing them would receive $5,250 per week net (70 x $75). Morgentaler would receive $3,500 per week (70 x $50) without lifting a finger, without, in fact, being in Toronto at all. Supposing the abortuary operates 50 weeks a year, Morgentaler would receive $175,000 a year (50 x $3,500) for “consultation” only. The doctor doing the abortions would get $262,500 a year (50 x $5,250) without having to spend a penny other than streetcar fare to and from the abortuary.
Meanwhile the holding company which manages the premises, hires and pays the two nurses and a receptionist, receives 70 x $175 per week for a total of $12,250 a week and a total of $612,500 per year. If the receptionist earns $15,000 and the two nurses $25,000 each (an overall total of $65,000 for the three of them) the Morgentaler-Smoling Company would have $547,000 left to pay light, heat, insurance and taxes on the property.
A.H.
