Officials associated with Columbia’s Planned Parenthood clinic are reminding the public that it remains open for other healthcare services even as its partner clinic in St. Louis is under threat as the last abortion provider in the state.
It was announced Tuesday that the St. Louis Planned Parenthood Clinic may have to stop performing abortions as of Friday, May 31, which would leave Missouri without an abortion provider.
The St. Louis clinic has been the only provider of abortion services in the state since October 2018 when the Columbia clinic had to stop offering abortions as it could not meet state requirements for physician admitting privileges.
The St. Louis clinic has been the only provider of abortion services in the state since October 2018 when the Columbia clinic had to stop offering abortions as it could not meet state requirements for physician admitting privileges.
Dr. Brandon Hill, the President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Plains – the organization that runs the Columbia clinic – said in a statement that the clinic continues to provide a range of sexual and reproductive health services for patients in Columbia.
“Let us be crystal clear for any patients experiencing uncertainty as a result of the state’s relentless attempts to push health care out of reach: Planned Parenthood’s doors are open,” Hill said.
He added that the clinic will also continue to counsel clients on their available options, “even if that means traveling to another state until abortion services resume in Missouri.”
Dr. Leana Wen, the President of Planned Parenthood said that a lawsuit has been filed in St. Louis in an attempt to keep the clinic open, but the clinic’s license is set to expire on Friday.
“If the court does not grant us a restraining order, Missouri will go dark and become the first state in the country with no health center that provides abortion care,” Wen said. “This is not a drill. This is not a warning. This is real and it is a public health crisis.”
Wen said that if the license is not renewed, this would be the first time Missouri has been without access to safe, legal abortion since 1974.
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