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NRL News
Merger
Mania Continues to Pick Up Momentum Mergers of Planned Parenthood affiliates have been quite common in recent years. In May 2007, Planned Parenthood affiliates from Tucson and Phoenix agreed to a merger that took place in October. A key reason given for the merger, according to an Arizona Daily Star report, was “to condense operations and increase fundraising to expand Planned Parenthood services in Southern Arizona and across the state” (5/26/07). Bryan Howard, who was to head the new merged group, told the Daily Star that it was Planned Parenthood’s goal to increase the number of clinics from 20 to 24 or 28. Affiliates from Roanoke, Virginia, and Raleigh, North Carolina, announced an interstate merger May 2007 that was to be finalized on June 30, 2007. Walter Klausmeier, head of the Raleigh affiliate, told the Roanoke Times that the merger would improve efficiency, but said he expected “no or minimal downsizing” at the Roanoke affiliate (5/14/07). Five Ohio affiliates merged to form Planned Parenthood of Northeast Ohio in July 2007 in what the Cleveland Plain Dealer termed “an effort to strengthen its influence in the region” (7/17/07). The paper called the merger “the largest Planned Parenthood consolidation in the country,” including 17 “health centers” with another that was supposed to open in the fall. Tara Broderick, CEO of the new organization, told the paper that one of the goals of the consolidation was to eliminate duplication of efforts and reduce administrative costs. Planned Parenthood affiliates of Northern Michigan and West Michigan (PPWNM) merged on September 30, 2007, to form Planned Parenthood of West and Northern Michigan after “unprecedented cuts in government funding forced the closure of five of its health centers by the end of 2007” (www.ppwnm.org, accessed 2/12/08). “As a larger organization,” PPWNM said, the affiliate would be “better positioned to weather the challenges that all health care providers face as community needs continue to grow at the same time that government funding decreases, regulations increase and healthcare costs soar.” Planned Parenthood of the Bluegrass and Planned Parenthood of Louisville, both established in the 1930s, merged on January 1, 2008, to form Planned Parenthood of Kentucky (PPKY). The aim of the merger, according to the group’s web site, was “to provide more comprehensive and consistent services to individuals throughout the state.” PPKY said the future of the new group is “bright” and said it looks forward to “expanded healthcare services, advocacy, education, and community outreach” (www.plannedparenthood.org/kentucky/history.htm, accessed 2/14/08). |