As part of an organization restructure, two of the six Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast clinics in the Houston area are set to close in September.
Operating as its own independent nonprofit organization, Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast — which runs six clinics in Houston and two in Louisiana — will close its Prevention Park and Southwest health centers on Sept. 30, according to the organization.
Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas will acquire and assume the operations of the four other Houston-area health centers on Oct. 1. The organization, which employs about 170 people in Texas, hasn’t made a final determination on the operations of the two remaining Louisiana clinics.
In a statement, Melaney Linton, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast, said the organization is navigating the consequences of “relentless, coordinated efforts to dismantle access to sexual and reproductive healthcare across our region.”
The restructure also comes a few days after a federal judge in Massachusetts granted a preliminary injunction to Planned Parenthood that blocks the U.S. government from cutting Medicaid payments to Planned Parenthood affiliate organizations that don’t provide abortion care, including Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas and the Gulf Coast division. Despite that, a 2021 court decision already barred the Texas affiliates from the Medicaid program — so even under the injunction, Planned Parenthood can not receive Medicaid payments in Texas.
The parent organization has been in the throes of legal battles with the Trump administration as provisions in the president’s key tax bill aim to cut funding for abortion providers.
Planned Parenthood stopped providing abortions in Texas in 2022 following the implementation of Senate Bill 8. Even after that, the Texas affiliates have been challenged by the state Legislature as Texas aimed to eliminate the organizations from state-funded health programs.
“And let’s be clear: having to reduce PPGC’s future footprint in Houston is heartbreaking, infuriating, and the direct result of these sustained political attacks,” Linton said. “But by consolidating our service areas, we are minimizing impact on patients and protecting access for the long-term.”
Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast will continue providing services for patients until October. A spokesperson for the affiliate said the restructure is the result of extensive evaluation and planning in a challenging landscape for health care delivery — including rising costs, low reimbursement rates, workforce shortages and inadequate public health infrastructure.
The Houston clinics will continue providing the same services to patients after the acquisition, like birth control, breast and cervical cancer screenings, gender-affirming care, HPV vaccinations and STI testing and treatment.
The restructure at the Gulf Coast division was announced internally this week and will impact most staff. The Texas division is hiring a limited number of positions and prioritizing existing staff members of the Gulf Coast affiliate for those roles, the spokesperson said.
Staff members of the Gulf Coast division are offered the chance to apply through an internal portal for those positions. Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas operates 18 other health centers across the state.
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