ASHLAND — The opening of a new Planned Parenthood health clinic appears to have quelled concerns about competition with other birth control providers, including Southern Oregon University.

Early worries that Planned Parenthood would divert federal funding from the SOU student health center, the Ashland High school-based health center and the Ashland Community Health Center have taken a back seat to a spirit of cooperation, officials said.

"I think it’s sort of been ‘it’s a done deal, let’s make the best of it,’ " said Lindsey Atherton, acting director of the SOU Student Health and Wellness Center.

"We really want to have a good working relationship."

That sentiment was echoed by Peg Crowley, director of the Community Health Center.

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"The bottom line is, people have another way to get access to needed care," Crowley said. "We are actively and cooperatively collaborating with them."

Planned Parenthood opened its first-ever Ashland clinic on Feb. 22, said community outreach director Paul Robinson.

Since then, about 50 clients have visited the site on the corner of Walker Avenue and Siskiyou Boulevard.

"We’ve had a lot of support," said Robinson.

Construction of the Ashland clinic and an upcoming move to a new Medford site is aimed at alleviating overcrowding, Robinson said.

Visits to the current Medford site at 916 Town Centre Drive increased nearly 25 percent between 2002 and 2003. They included many clients who live in Ashland, Talent and Phoenix, Robinson said.

When construction of the new center was announced last summer, some existing providers worried that Planned Parenthood would siphon funds available through the federal Family Planning Expansion Project.

The program, aimed at decreasing pregnancy among low-income people and teens, provides $105 per birth control visit, plus the cost of supplies, to the agency that logs the service, said Hank Collins, Jackson County Health and Human Services director.

"We get 4 cents per condom and between $15 and $18 per pack of pills," he said.

The money follows the clients and those fees can add up. In the last three months of 2004, for instance, SOU billed Jackson County for nearly $47,000 in FPEP services, Collins said.

The Ashland High School-based health center billed for about $4,300 in services and the Community Health Center billed for nearly $4,800 in fees, Collins added.

If clients start going to the Planned Parenthood clinic instead, those other agencies could lose funds, officials said. SOU bills for about 2,000 visits a year for fees that amount to 14 or 15 percent of the center’s $1.5 million budget, officials said previously.

Robinson said established clients aren’t likely to change their health care arrangements.

"We’re not going to have a significant effect on them," he said.

And representatives from all the organizations said it’s likely Planned Parenthood will simply serve people who aren’t already being treated.

In addition, the Planned Parenthood clinic, which offers only reproductive services, will send clients to the other centers for overall health care.

"They’re making referrals to us and we’re making referrals to them," said Crowley. "The important thing is to get people being served."

Planned Parenthood officials estimate it will take up to three months to build a client base at the new clinic.

By then, SOU students will be out for the summer, allowing a window of time for the new clinic to integrate into the community.

"It’s going to be interesting," Atherton said.

If you go

The clinic will offer contraception, emergency contraception, pregnancy testing and counseling, testing for HIV and sexually transmitted diseases and annual exams for women, as well as services and referrals for men.

Hours are 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays and 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays.

For more information, call 482-8700.

Reach reporter JoNel Aleccia at 776-4465, or e-mail jaleccia@mailtribune.com