Kentucky Planned Parenthood to Resume Abortions Under New Democrat Governor

The Planned Parenthood in Louisville , Kentucky, will resume performing abortions in March — after being halted by the former Republican governor who was ousted in November.

Former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, a Republican, had issued an order to halt abortions at the clinic in 2016. He was unseated by Democrat Andy Beshear, and the clinic has now been given a provisional license from state officials.

The Louisville Planned Parenthood is now one of only two abortion clinics in the state.

“Kentucky has gone from one abortion provider to two, which is a significant win for reproductive health care in the state,” Chris Charbonneau, CEO of Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky, said in a statement announcing the provisional license. “All people in Kentucky deserve to make their own pregnancy decisions and to have access to safe and legal abortion.”

Charbonneau added that “in January, CHFS rescinded the denial of PPINK’s license application, and the case brought against PPINK regarding the license was dismissed. The lawsuit filed under the previous administration was a blatant attack against reproductive rights and made no attempt to follow proper protocols and procedures.”

In August of last year, Cabinet for Health and Family Services Secretary Adam Meier said that the clinic never had a license to be performing abortions.

The governor before Bevin, Democrat Steve Beshear, had told the clinic that in order to get a license they would need to be operating and inspected. Though the clinic began performing abortions, they were never inspected — and therefore never licensed.

When Bevin took office, he ordered the state inspector general to shut down the practice. Planned Parenthood had been battling the state in court ever since.

Only 23 abortions were performed at the clinic from the time that they were given the greenlight by Beshear and shut down by Bevin.

The only other abortion provider in the state is EMW Women’s Surgical Center, which is also in Louisville.