Kansas
‘Take back some control’: Kansas abortion provider offers vasectomies • Kansas Reflector
TOPEKA — A regional abortion provider is rolling out vasectomy services in Kansas as part of a toolkit to keep reproductive choices secure at the family level.
The move comes after increased demand as multiple states attempt to chip away at reproductive rights.
Planned Parenthood Great Plains is hosting a low-cost two-day vasectomy clinic at its Kansas City, Kansas, health center May 30-31 to kick off the service, which will continue to be offered at the center.
Planned Parenthood Great Plains president and CEO Emily Wales said the decision came after increased demand following the 2022 federal overturn of abortion protections.
“We don’t see hesitation,” Wales said. “We see folks who are really appreciative, excited. It is a pretty cool thing I think, to have patients here who are saying openly, ‘This moment is a terrible one for sexual and reproductive health care. And this is a thing I can do to help take care of my family and my loved ones. And I’m going to do it for all of us.’ ”
While Kansas is one of the few states in the region left that protects abortion — legal up to 22 weeks of gestation — the state has been flooded with out-of-state travelers needing abortion services. Kansas has six centers that provide abortions, but one has shut down services with no set deadline to reopen after staff changes.
Planned Parenthood Great Plains has added a handful of appointments to mitigate the effect of the shutdown, but the organization is already dealing with a heavy workload. The organization will be expanding access this fall, opening a center in southeast Kansas to keep up with demand.
Wales estimated the boom in demand began in 2021, when the Texas Legislature initiated a six-week abortion ban, prompting a wave of Texans traveling to Kansas for abortion care. The 2022 overturn of Roe v. Wade increased need, especially after Oklahoma, Missouri, Arkansas and Louisiana banned abortion.
In-state abortion providers have also had to contend with a web of abortion restrictions passed by a Republican-dominated Legislature. While Kansas voters in August of 2022 overwhelmingly defeated a constitutional amendment meant to take away the right to terminate a pregnancy, lawmakers have continuously tried to restrict the procedure, adding more regulations to the Women’s Right to Know Act, a patchwork legislation governing the state’s abortion protocols.
Planned Parenthood Great Plains and other abortion providers in-state have ongoing litigation against several provisions in the act, most recently challenging an “abortion survey” law passed in 2024.
“We’re not strangers to having to adapt our processes, make changes, go through hurdles and hoops,” Wales said. “But in a state like Kansas, where you have a constitutional protection to access this care, we shouldn’t be going through any of those hurdles and hoops.”
To combat state restrictions, the organization launched vasectomy services last year starting with a Tulsa, Oklahoma, center and expanding through Arkansas, Oklahoma and Missouri. The organization has completed 189 vasectomy procedures to date.
“Providing accessible reproductive and sexual health care is at the core of our mission to empower individuals to lead healthy, autonomous lives,” said Iman Alsaden, chief medical officer at Planned Parenthood Great Plains.
The overall rate of U.S. vasectomy procedures has increased since the end of Roe, becoming a more popular birth control option as states imposed partial or total abortion bans. The procedure is permanent, can be accomplished in one appointment and is relatively cheap compared to other methods of birth control such as IUDS. Planned Parenthood Great Plains estimates a cost of $250 to $750 for a vasectomy during the two-day clinic.
“We saw a bump in patients requesting IUD implants and I think vasectomy is kind of the same reaction where folks were caught off guard, shocked by what the Supreme Court did, shocked by the idea that the government could control such personal decisions,” Wales said. “And so vasectomy feels like a way to take back some of that control over your own body and your own future.”
One of the top prospects in the 2027 boys’ high school basketball recruiting class recently trimmed his list of suitors, and the Kansas Jayhawks find themselves firmly in the mix.
KU is one of eight schools to make the cut for 2027 five-star small forward Demarcus Henry, according to On3 National Basketball Reporter Joe Tipton. His list of eight includes some of the best programs in the country: Kansas, Ohio State, Kentucky, North Carolina, BYU, Arkansas, UConn, and Louisville.
The 6-foot-7 Charlotte, North Carolina, native is one of the best players in the 2027 class. He’s currently ranked as the No. 5 player overall and the No. 1 player at his position, according to the most recent On3.com 2027 player rankings.
As a junior this past year at Compass Prep High School in Chandler, Arizona, Henry averaged 15.5 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 2.2 steals per game as he helped lead his team to a 25-3 record.
He followed that up with an impressive performance at the NBPA Top 100 camp this summer, leading all attendees in scoring (20.0 points per game) and rebounding (9.3 rebounds per game). He was also a member of the 2026 USA Men’s U18 National Team that earned a silver medal at the FIBA U18 AmeriCup earlier this summer in León, Mexico.
When speaking about his game, Henry mentions his versatility and how he’s developed over the past year.
“I’m just very versatile,” Henry told Rivals in a previous interview. “I can play one through four and just help my teammates and hit shots and play defense. I watch a lot of KD (Kevin Durant) and Paul George. How they score it, and how they could shoot off the dribble, shoot off the catch. I’ve gotten tougher and just more aggressive when I transferred AZ Compass and just being able to get downhill, I feel like that’s really developed for me.”
When asked about what he’s looking for in a potential home at the college level, Henry says he wants to be challenged and grow his game for the NBA.
“What I’m looking for in school is someone that just pushes me to be better,” Henry said. “Help me grow into the person I know I can be and someone who will help me reach my potential. I want to play for a coach that will hold me accountable and help me make me uncomfortable and keep growing and keep getting better and just help me reach the NBA, which is my ultimate goal.”
Early Contenders
Right now the early favorite to land Henry may be the basketball program with the least amount of notoriety of the final eight schools – and that is Ohio State.
Henry has a lot of familial ties to the university as his older brother Chris Henry Jr. is a five-star incoming freshman wide receiver for the Buckeyes football team this year, and his older sister Seini Henry is a talented women’s basketball player at Ohio State.
He’s already taken an unofficial visit to the school and has also taken an unofficial visit to BYU. Thus far, they are the only schools to have received a visit.
Follow
The Royals have been linked to shortstop Jacob Lombard out of Gulliver Prep (Fla.) — if he makes it that far — left-hander Gio Rojas out of Stoneman Douglas (Fla.) HS, outfielder Eric Booth Jr. out of Oak Grove (Fla.) HS, UC Santa Barbara right-hander Jackson Flora and Georgia Tech outfielder Drew Burress, among others. Maybe they shake up the board and go with Huntington Beach (Calif.) HS left-hander/outfielder Jacob Grindlinger, who is just 17 years old after reclassifying for this year’s Draft and has legitimate upside as a two-way player. Grindlinger is No. 16 on MLB Pipeline’s Top 250 Draft prospects list and is rising on boards as Draft day nears.
Prep players usually mean a lot of upside but with more risk, while college players bring a higher floor and more experience — often with a chance to move quickly. Over the full Draft, the Royals are going to value both.
“There’s a good mix of high school and college,” Bridges said. “To tell you the truth, our range is pretty broad. There’s a clear-cut four players, five players in this Draft, and then believe it or not, where we’re picking, you can go a number of different directions. So we have a pretty good balance of what we’re looking at, both high school and college.”
The Kansas Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at July 7, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Mega Millions numbers from July 7 drawing
02-31-35-36-63, Mega Ball: 12
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from July 7 drawing
Midday: 4-2-9
Evening: 2-7-9
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning 2 By 2 numbers from July 7 drawing
Red Balls: 07-26, White Balls: 12-18
Check 2 By 2 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from July 7 drawing
27-43-48-49-50, Bonus: 02
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
All Kansas Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $599. For prizes over $599, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at select Kansas Lottery offices.
By mail, send a winner claim form and your signed lottery ticket to:
Kansas Lottery Headquarters
128 N Kansas Avenue
Topeka, KS 66603-3638
(785) 296-5700
To submit in person, sign the back of your ticket, fill out a claim form, and deliver the form along with your signed lottery ticket to Kansas Lottery headquarters. 128 N Kansas Avenue, Topeka, KS 66603-3638, (785) 296-5700. Hours: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.
Check previous winning numbers and payouts at Kansas Lottery.
When are the Kansas Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 3 Midday/Evening: 1:10 p.m. and 9:10 p.m. CT daily.
- 2 By 2: 9:30 p.m. CT daily.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Super Kansas Cash: 9:10 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Kansas editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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