N.C. Senate Approves Bill To Offer Contraception, STI Information In School Sex Education Courses

Main Category: Sexual Health / STDs
Article Date: 26 Jun 2009 - 6:00 PDT

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The North Carolina Senate on Tuesday voted 25-21 to approve a bill (S. 221) that would require public school systems in the state to offer a sex education curriculum that includes information on abstinence, contraceptives and sexually transmitted infections, the Winston-Salem Journal reports. Currently, only two public school systems in the state offer comprehensive sex education, with the rest teaching abstinence-only curricula. Under the bill, parents would be able to have their children removed from the comprehensive portions of the program (Romoser, Winston-Salem Journal, 6/24). The bill would apply to students in seventh through ninth grade (AP/Virginian-Pilot, 6/23).

The bill includes several changes from an earlier version that was approved by the state House. The measure now returns to the House, where lawmakers will decide whether to approve the Senate's changes (Winston-Salem Journal, 6/24).

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