Kentucky Coalition Calls For Rejection Of Federal Abstinence-Only Funding

Main Category: Sexual Health / STDs
Also Included In: Pediatrics / Children's Health;  Women's Health / Gynecology
Article Date: 19 Sep 2008 - 9:00 PST

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A coalition of six organizations say abstinence-only education is not the right approach for sex education and is calling for Kentucky's health department to reject $820,000 in federal money for the programs, the Lexington Herald-Leader reports. The funding comes with the stipulation that programs using it must only teach abstinence. The coalition, which includes Planned Parenthood of Kentucky and the American Civil Liberties Union, supports what it calls "medically accurate sexual education," which includes information about abstinence and how to avoid pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. According to the coalition, abstinence-only programs promote gender stereotypes and are "fear-based" and ineffective, the Herald-Leader reports.

Derek Selznick, reproductive freedom director for ACLU of Kentucky, said, "One of the biggest problems is that we know teens are having sex, regardless of what message is being presented to them," adding that the coalition wants teens to "make responsible decisions about their sexual lives." Greg Williams -- director of Heritage of Kentucky, which is focused on abstinence-only education -- said teaching teenagers about contraceptives confuses the abstinence message and "opens a Pandora's box."

Kentucky Department of Education spokesperson Lisa Gross said that the state does not require schools to teach a certain type of sex education nor does it track what school districts require. Elayne Hollinger, the Lexington Fayette County Health Department's abstinence education coordinator, said that the federal abstinence-only funding is used to teach abstinence-only programs in middle and elementary schools adding that losing the federal funding "would be a travesty."

Both sides cite statistics to make their case. Kentucky has traditionally had a higher teen birth rate than the rest of the nation and had a 6.6% increase in teen birthrates between 2005 and 2006. In 2006, Kentucky's teen birthrate was 19% higher than the rest of the country (Meehan, Lexington Herald-Leader, 9/17).

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