LIHUE – After two years of service, Planned Parenthood of Hawaii officials said Tuesday the organization is halting walk-in office services on Kauai.
Officials didn’t specify why it was closing the office off Rice Street that had been open only on Fridays, but said it will expand its educational outreach on the island while the office is closed.
“We’ve determined that our time and resources are best spent in the community providing Kauai’s families and youth with the education, information and skills they need to keep themselves safe, healthy and strong,” Andrea Anderson, Planned Parenthood of Hawaii president and CEO, said in a press release. “We continue to fine tune our business model and remain confident that our Kauai health center will reopen in the near future.”
The last day for the office, 4357 Rice St. Ste. 101, will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday.
Laurie Temple, spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood, said it wasn’t a permanent closure.
“We’re looking to reopen that clinic when it’s responsive to the need there,” she said.
Temple couldn’t say if budget or patron reasons factored into the decision, nor if any thresholds would have to be met for the office to reopen. Personnel at the office referred questions to the Honolulu office, who didn’t respond Tuesday.
Since it opened two years ago, more than 500 individuals received affordable, confidential sexual and reproductive health care services at the walk-in health center, including pregnancy testing, contraception, emergency contraception, sexually transmitted infection testing, HIV testing and counseling, according to the press release.
Planned Parenthood calls itself the nation’s leading sexual and reproductive health care provider and advocate.
Mistee Bailey-Myrick, executive director of Malama Pono Health Services that shares office space with Planned Parenthood, said her organization will take over STD testing for the organization.
• Tom Hasslinger, managing editor, can be reached at 245-0427 or thasslinger@thegardenisland.com.
