Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains says they received enough donations to keep its Farmington health center open.
Five months ago, the organization announced the Farmington location would be one of three in the state to close by this fall.
“We cannot begin to express our gratitude to the people of Farmington and their commitment to reproductive health care access in New Mexico,” Vicki Cowart, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains said in a statement. “We know how important access to reproductive care is for our rural communities, and today we celebrate being able to keep this health center open, thus ensuring access to care for women, men, and young people in Farmington and the surrounding areas.”
The health center does not perform surgical abortions.
In May, the organization announced it needed to close three health centers in New Mexico, including locations in Farmington, Albuquerque and Rio Rancho.
At the time, a spokeswoman attributed the closures to “reduced patient volume” as well as the difficulty of the “reproductive health landscape” at the time.
Republicans in Congress have stepped up efforts to attempt to “defund” Planned Parenthood. The efforts, which would bar the organization from receiving Medicaid reimbursements because the organization performs abortions, were part of the healthcare overhaul debate.
The U.S. Senate failed to repeal the Affordable Care Act, known by some as Obamacare, after a series of dramatic votes in July. At the time, the Senate parliamentarian announced that such defunding would not be able to be passed with reconciliation, which only requires a majority of voters in the Senate. Instead, it would need to go through regular rules, which would require 60 votes to overcome a filibuster, a virtual impossibility with Democrats opposed to the idea.
