Planned Parenthood fights to continue abortion services
Published Aug. 21, 2007
Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri presented a case in court asking for an injunction preventing them from having to halt abortion procedures in the Columbia and Kansas City centers. The centers will have to stop providing abortions by Sept. 28 because of legislation passed last session.
The legislation would leave the St. Louis clinic as the only establishment allowed to perform surgical and medication abortions in the state.
Planned Parenthood has presented a case against this legislation, due to the protection provided to them by a grandfather clause included in regulations passed in the late '80s.
"Our architect is looking at an estimate of $1.2 to $1.3 million if we were to comply with the general abortion center regulations," said Peter Brownlie, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri. "The current regulations, which have been in place since the late '80s, do include this category of abortion facility and we believe we should be decisive of this."
According to Brownlie, their facilities have performed safe procedures for the last 30 years. During 20 of these 30 years, the state allowed abortion to be provided by physicians in office practices if the percentage of abortion procedures was less than 50 percent of the procedures performed and revenue.
"We expect that [the judge] will make a decision within a couple of days," Brownlie said.
Brownlie said there are about 600 family-planning sessions occurring at the Columbia Planned Parenthood center on a monthly basis.
"We provide 550 to 600 abortions per year in Columbia, at this point half are surgical procedures and the other half are medicated," Brownlie said. "At the Midtown Patricia Brous Center in Kansas City, we provided just about the same number of 550 procedures per year."
The bill also includes restrictions that prevent facilities that provide abortion procedures from providing classroom education.
The bill states that a "Missouri Alternatives to Abortion Public Awareness Program" will be implemented and administered by either, "a state agency or agencies, as designated by appropriations to such or each agency."
Brownlie said that if the governor were serious on abortion, he would work with what we know already about reducing the rates of abortion.
"They've been declining because of providing good quality sex education and good family planning," Brownlie said. "The only thing that would happen after this bill is passed would be women traveling further and risking their health in order to receive aide."
According to Planned Parenthood lobbyist Michelle Trupiano, abortions are priced at $435 and are only done during the first trimester of pregnancy.
"Even though it's clear we have every right to continue procedures, this is happening mostly because it's about politics," Trupiano said. "We'll just have to see what the Department of Health has to say."