Planned Parenthood closes Rolla, MO facility, will continue telehealth

Planned Parenthood Great Rivers (PPGR) announced on Tuesday that it is closing it's Rolla, Missouri location, but will retain staff members and continue operating as a telehealth business.

Key Takeaways:

• Planned Parenthood Great Rivers announced the closure of its Rolla, Missouri facility, scheduled for January 1, 2026.

• It plans to continue to use Rolla staff members to provide telehealth services to clients.

• The Rolla location did not commit abortions but does refer for abortions and will help provide transportation and logistics support for women who wish to travel for "services."

• While PPGR blames the loss of Medicaid funding for the closure, restructuring such as this has been an ongoing effort of Planned Parenthood since at least 2019.

• In 2024, PPGR closed three other Missouri facilities.

The Details:

According to West Plains Daily Quill, PPGR will officially close its Rolla health center to in-person appointments beginning on January 1, although Facebook posts and comments appear to show that the facility has been closed for in-person visits for most of December. It will continue working with clients via telehealth and claims that the decision is part of a strategy to sustain PPGR amid political "attacks." Last year, PPGR closed three other Missouri facilities.

"At Planned Parenthood, our patients are our north star," said Margot Riphagen, president and CEO of PPGR. "Shifting Rolla fully to telehealth enables patients to continue receiving the sexual and reproductive health care they trust while ensuring our long-term sustainability amid repeated attacks against sexual and reproductive health care in Missouri and across the country."

The Rolla Planned Parenthood did not commit abortions, and will continue to offer birth control, emergency contraception, "gender-affirming care," menopause care, urinary tract infection treatment, and vasectomy consultations. It previously offered free vasectomies to men. PPGR offers transportation for patients who want to travel for certain "care."

Mark Lee Dickson, founder of Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn, posted on Facebook, "In June, I teamed up with Live Action to help lead prayer gatherings outside of Planned Parenthoods across our nation. One prayer gathering that we held was at the Planned Parenthood in Rolla, Missouri. Today, I received the news that this Planned Parenthood is closing down. This is what we prayed for."

Planned Parenthood plays victim despite intentional shift toward virtual business model

Joe Dalton, CEO of Pregnancy Resource Center in Rolla (PRC), told Phelps County Focus, “For decades they have tried to sell the illusion that they were the gold standard for women’s health. Saying, if they have to close, women’s healthcare will suffer. With Phelps Health, Four Rivers clinics, Mercy and all of the wonderful medical professionals in our community, we have plenty of access to quality women’s healthcare. In addition, PRC serves over 500 women per year, and our services are completely free of charge . Planned Parenthood really is the gold standard of abortion. Nothing else, just killing tiny humans. Rolla will be a better place without them here. We are super grateful they are closing.”

The Bottom Line:

While PPGR is blaming the Trump administration's one-year federal Medicaid defunding of Planned Parenthood and Missouri lawmakers' decision to block Planned Parenthood Medicaid funding, Planned Parenthood has been actively closing clinics for years. Its move to a telehealth model and abortion pill via telemedicine have been a part of the organization's business plan since at least 2019. As Live Action research fellow Carole Novielli explained, "Planned Parenthood continues to play the victim for political gain, as it had already been planning closures and consolidations with a deliberate move toward telehealth in all of its affiliates."