More States Opting Out Of Title V Abstinence-Only Education Funding, The AP/Google.com Reports

Main Category: Sexual Health / STDs
Also Included In: Women's Health / Gynecology;  Pediatrics / Children's Health
Article Date: 26 Jun 2008 - 6:00 PST

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Many states are opting out of funding from the federal Title V abstinence education program amidst "doubts that the program works" and "frustrat[ion] by chronic uncertainty that Congress will continue to fund the program," the AP/Google.com reports. According to the AP/Google.com, although a federal tally shows that 28 states are still participating in the program, participation in the program is down 40% over the past two years. Arizona and Iowa have said they will no longer accept the funding as of Oct. 1.

The state abstinence-only education program, referred to as Title V, is one of three abstinence education programs funded by the federal government. Under the program, states have to put up $3 for every $4 they get from the federal government, according to the AP/Google.com. States participating in Title V must give the funds to programs that follow a congressionally mandated curriculum that teaches the "social, psychological and health gains of abstaining from sexual activity." Teachers are instructed to say that sexual activity outside marriage is likely to have harmful physical and psychological effects, the AP/Google.com reports. Supporters of the program argue that abstinence is the only method that is 100% effective in preventing pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. Opponents say abstinence education simply does not stop teens from having sex, and those teens need more information about how to reduce pregnancy and disease.

Emily Hajek, policy adviser to Iowa Gov. Chet Culver (D), said the governor decided to opt out of the program because it was "just too strict." She added, "We believe local providers have the knowledge to teach what's going to be best in those situations, what kind of information will help those young people be safe." Elke Shaw-Tulloch of the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, which opted out of the program last year, said, "The funding stream became inconsistent. We didn't know from one quarter to the next whether we'd be getting the rest of the money." She added, "We got to the point where we didn't have any infrastructure to put the money to use. At the same time, there was mounting evidence the abstinence programs weren't proving to be effective."

A federally funded study released in April 2007 found that the abstinence-only sex education programs were not effective in preventing or delaying teenagers from having sexual intercourse. Ned Calonge -- chief medical officer in Colorado, which also opted out of the program -- said the study's methods were the gold standard for scientific studies and sealed Colorado's decision to opt out. "To show no benefit compared to nothing ... was striking," Calonge said, adding, "These are tax dollars that are going for no useful purpose, and it would not be responsible for us to take those dollars."

Stanley Koutstaal, who oversees HHS' Administration for Children and Families abstinence-only education programs, said the study was instructive on how to improve the program, but it was not a signal to scrap it because the study focused on middle school children and tracked their behavior at the high school level. "One thing we learned from it was that it may not be enough to do something in middle school and expect that you're going to continue to see positive outcomes in high school," Koutstaal said.

He added that many states still find Title V "valuable" and called on Congress to reauthorize the program long-term. Jen Bennecke, director of the Georgia governor's office for children and families, said about 250,000 students have participated in the state's abstinence-only education programs. Bennecke credited the programs for helping reduce the state's teen pregnancy rate, adding that Georgia sees "abstinence education as a clear, concise and positive message" (Freking, AP/Google.com, 6/24).

An AP/Google.com tally of states receiving Title V grants this year is available online (AP/Google.com, 6/24).

Christian Science Monitor Examines 'Rekindled' Teen Pregnancy Debate

In related news, a rise in teen pregnancy at a high school in Gloucester, Mass., has "rekindled a longstanding debate over how to discourage teen pregnancies," the Christian Science Monitor reports. At least 17 girls at Gloucester High School are pregnant -- four times more than last year. Bill Albert, chief program officer for the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, said, "What's happening in Gloucester is a microcosm in some ways for what we're seeing at the national level."

According to CDC, birth rates among teens ages 15 to 17 increased 3% between 2005 and 2006, the first increase since 1991. Stephanie Ventura, head of CDC's reproductive statistics branch, said it is too soon to say whether the reversal represents a national trend toward more teen births or is simply a "one-year blip." Another CDC report released earlier this month found that condom use among sexually active high school students was essentially unchanged from 2003 to 2007 after steadily increasing from 1991 to 2003, the Monitor reports.

David Landry of the Guttmacher Institute said that more than $1 billion in federal abstinence-only education funding since 1996 has not taught young people to be sexually responsible. Landry criticized the programs for only discussing contraception in terms of failure rates. According to the Monitor, finding a "solution" to reducing teen pregnancies is "contentious" in part because advocates of abstinence-only education are "equally as adamant" that the programs are effective.

Albert noted that there are "two things that matter when it comes to preventing pregnancy: not having sex and using contraceptives consistently and carefully." He added, "Both are leveling off at the very best. That may be why we're seeing an increase" in the teen birth rate (Quintanilla, Christian Science Monitor, 6/25).

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