{"id":304922,"date":"2024-01-10T16:44:04","date_gmt":"2024-01-10T22:44:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=304922"},"modified":"2024-01-10T17:17:40","modified_gmt":"2024-01-10T23:17:40","slug":"illinois-planned-parenthood-childrens-playroom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/illinois-planned-parenthood-childrens-playroom\/","title":{"rendered":"Illinois Planned Parenthood houses ‘procedure’ rooms… and a children’s playroom"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Planned Parenthood of Illinois held a ribbon-cutting ceremony<\/a> on Monday for its new abortion facility, the Carbondale Health Center. The center boasts that in addition to four rooms in which abortions will be carried out by abortion pill, it has a playroom for children.<\/p>\n

The Southern Illinoisan reported that the facility, which will be the third<\/em> abortion facility in Carbondale (a location of Southern Illinois University), has “five education rooms, four procedure rooms, three exam\/ultrasound rooms and a kids playroom…” It also noted, “[T]he health center expands access to reproductive health care services for Illinoisans and out-of-state-patients.”<\/p>\n

Carbondale’s City Council passed an ordinance previously that made the city a safe haven<\/a> for abortion.<\/p>\n

Increase in out-of-state abortion clients<\/strong><\/p>\n

President and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Illinois, Jennifer Welch, claims the regional group has seen a 54% increase in abortions and has had women from 40 states travel to Illinois for abortions following the overturning of Roe v. Wade<\/em> in June 2022.<\/p>\n

“Today is an amazing day in the continued fight to expand reproductive and sexual health care access in the Carbondale community, in Southern Illinois and for people forced to flee from their home state for care,” said Welch. She added that the opening of the clinic is a step towards “equitable access to health care… including gender-affirming care, birth control options, STI testing and treatment and abortion care.”<\/p>\n

In addition to the new Planned Parenthood location in Carbondale, the city also has two other abortion businesses: Choices Center for Reproductive Health and Alamo Women’s Reproductive Services. Welch said all three are necessary because of the increase in out-of-state abortion clients.<\/p>\n

No one is being “forced to flee their home state for care” because abortion is not health care and is not medically necessary<\/a>. No woman is forced<\/em> to travel out of state to seek the planned death of their preborn child. She chooses to do so or is pressured into doing so.<\/p>\n