Planned Parenthood now offers abortion pill in Wichita
Planned Parenthood now offers medication abortions – commonly called the abortion pill – at its Wichita location at 2226 E. Central.
Planned Parenthood said it served its first patient in Wichita last Thursday.
Along with the abortion pill, the East Central location also now offers menopausal symptom management services.
Bonyen Lee-Gilmore, communications and marketing director for Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri, said Planned Parenthood hopes to soon offer transgender care and HIV preventive care in Wichita.
Lee-Gilmore said the expanded services are part of the executive director’s vision to make access to care easier for Kansans who live in western and southeastern Kansas.
“We see women who drive across the entire state of Kansas” to Planned Parenthood’s offices in Overland Park and Kansas City, she said. The Overland Park location offers both surgical and medication abortions.
Lee-Gilmore said Planned Parenthood offers the abortion pill for pregnancies nine weeks or under and offers surgical abortions between seven and 21 weeks. She said patients can choose which they prefer if they fall in the overlap period.
The Planned Parenthood office in Wichita does not offer surgical abortions.
Reaction from anti-abortion group
Cheryl Sullenger, senior vice president of Operation Rescue, an anti-abortion organization, said she thinks Planned Parenthood’s decision to offer the abortion pill in Wichita is exploitative.
“It’s really a dangerous practice that they’re engaging in, and it’s totally for money,” Sullenger said. She said the Brownback administration plans to cut off funding to Planned Parenthood.
Sullenger said she plans to be at the Planned Parenthood site in Wichita the next time the clinic offers abortions.
Lee-Gilmore, of Planned Parenthood, said the clinic would schedule according to the needs of its patients.
Gabriella Dunn: 316-268-6400, @gabriella_dunn
This story was originally published March 22, 2016 at 4:06 PM with the headline "Planned Parenthood now offers abortion pill in Wichita."