Planned Parenthood opens new virtual health center in Kentucky

By Melissa Patrick
Kentucky Health News

Planned Parenthood has launched a new virtual health center in Kentucky to provide wider access to reproductive health care across the state.

“Expanding telehealth options in Kentucky is no longer just a convenience—it’s a critical lifeline,” Rebecca Gibson, CEO of Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawaii, Alaska, Indiana and Kentucky, said in a news release. “With some of the nation’s worst sexual health outcomes, long travel distances for rural patients, provider shortages, high maternal mortality rates, and rising STI (sexually transmitted infection) rates, Kentuckians urgently need accessible and judgment-free care.”

Planned Parenthood says increasing access to reproductive health care across Kentucky is critical, stating in the release that more than half of the state’s rural hospitals have eliminated their labor and delivery services and 76 out of 120 counties lack an obstetrician-gynecologist, who are often referred to as an OB-GYN.

The Kentucky Virtual Health Center will only be available to patients located in Kentucky. Patients can book appointments through a secure video platform to discuss birth control, emergency contraception, pregnancy planning, gender-affirming care, sexually transmitted infection testing and treatment, menopause support, and more.

“By expanding telehealth services, we can begin to close the gaps created by poverty and limited insurance coverage by meeting our patients where they are,” Gibson added.” In a state where reproductive health options are already under intense pressure, ensuring equitable telehealth access is essential for protecting the well-being of every Kentuckian.”

The Lexington and Louisville Planned Parenthood centers will remain open for in-person care, and telehealth appointments will be available six days a week.