Louisiana Clinics to Close Amid Funding Cuts

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Planned Parenthood will close both of its health centres in Louisiana by 30 September, citing ongoing financial pressure and political opposition. The decision affects clinics in Baton Rouge and New Orleans, which currently provide reproductive healthcare services including birth control, cancer screenings, and routine testing.

The organization has not been licensed to perform abortions in Louisiana. However, it has offered travel assistance for women seeking legal terminations in other states.

Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast President Melaney Linton said the closures were a direct response to sustained political pressure. “This is not a decision we wanted to make,” she said in a statement, describing the situation as the result of “relentless political assaults.”

“This cruelty and failed leadership are the reasons we are here today,” Linton added.

The announcement was welcomed by Louisiana’s Republican leadership. Governor Jeff Landry, who has long opposed the organization, said it marked a “major win for the pro-life movement.” In a post on social media platform X, he added: “I have fought hard as Attorney General and now as Governor to rid our state of this failed organisation. Abortion should never be considered healthcare.”

Attorney General Liz Murrill also voiced her approval. “Planned Parenthood built its business around promoting death. Louisiana chooses life. We will always protect women and babies,” she said in a press release.

Anti-abortion group Louisiana Right to Life described the closure as “a powerful victory for life”, claiming the decision confirms the group’s focus on abortion-related services over healthcare.

However, Democratic state representative Mandie Landry expressed concern about the consequences for low-income women. “They’re just hurting poor women who don’t have the option to go elsewhere for healthcare,” she told the USA Today Network.

The closure coincides with federal efforts to tighten restrictions on funding for clinics associated with abortion services. President Trump’s proposed “One Big Beautiful Bill” would prevent any Medicaid payments to organisations that provide abortion services, even for unrelated treatments.

Currently, more than half of Planned Parenthood’s patients nationwide depend on Medicaid for access to care.