LA HABRA : Planned Parenthood to Open New Office

Planned Parenthood of Orange and San Bernardino counties, part of a national organization that provides men and women with health care, educational and counseling services, will open an office in La Habra on Wednesday.

In addition to offering advice about contraception, the La Habra office will conduct cancer screening, AIDS tests, premarital blood tests and various gynecological services, according to Betty Patterson, director of development.

“The center is not equipped to perform abortions,” Patterson said.

The office, at 1480 S. Harbor Blvd., will open with a staff of one or more medical practitioners, each specially trained in family planning, Patterson said. Other personnel will include clerical workers and an office manager.

The agency operates Orange County centers in Costa Mesa, Garden Grove, Mission Viejo and Santa Ana, as well as a San Bernardino County center in Upland.

The two-county Planned Parenthood centers serve about 12,000 people each year, she said.

The agency has a budget of about $3 million. Patterson said that funding comes in nearly equal shares from private donations, patient fees and government reimbursements, mostly from the state Office of Family Planning.

Part of the impetus for opening the La Habra office came from the closure of two centers operated by the now-defunct Anaheim Counseling Center.

“We have a very dedicated group of supporters,” she said. “We’ve been in Orange County for 25 years.”

An open house at the La Habra office has been scheduled for March 7, between 3 and 6 p.m.