Oklahoma, Kansas-Missouri Planned Parenthood Groups To Merge

Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri plans to merge with the abortion provider's central Oklahoma affiliate in July.

The Kansas and Mid-Missouri affiliate announced the merger Wednesday. President and CEO Laura McQuade has been the central Oklahoma affiliate's interim CEO since January.

The new, larger affiliate will be Planned Parenthood Great Plains. It will continue to operate eight existing clinics in the three states and announced plans to open a new one in July in northwest Oklahoma City.

The merger comes with all three states looking to cut off Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood.

But McQuade said those actions against Planned Parenthood had nothing to do with the merger. She said the two affiliates have been in merger talks for a year and no staff will be laid off.