Missouri’s only abortion clinic could be closed by the end of the week because the state is threatening to not renew its license, Planned Parenthood officials said Tuesday.
ST. LOUIS — Missouri’s only abortion clinic could be closed by the end of the week because the state is threatening to not renew its license, Planned Parenthood officials said Tuesday.
Planned Parenthood officials said in a teleconference that the current license for the St. Louis facility expires Friday. If it isn’t renewed, the organization said Missouri would become the first state without a functioning abortion clinic since Roe v. Wade in 1973, when the U. S. Supreme Court legalized abortion.
“This is not a drill,” said Dr. Leana Wen, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America. “This is not a warning. This is real and it’s a public health crisis.”
According to a lawsuit filed by Planned Parenthood on Tuesday to try to ensure continued abortion services in St. Louis, the state health department visited the clinic in April to investigate a patient complaint.
Planned Parenthood says the agency hasn’t specified the complaint, but said its subsequent “investigation has identified a large number of potential deficient practices requiring explanation by the physicians directly involved in patient care, as well as the attending physicians.”
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services and Gov. Mike Parson’s office didn’t respond to phone and email messages seeking comment Tuesday.
The lawsuit says the state wanted to interview seven physicians, including medical fellows who no longer provide care at the clinic. It says two staff doctors agreed but the others did not, and Planned Parenthood can’t compel them because they’re not staff.
