I want to thank Liz Kruger for her recent post on the Healthy Teens Act (S.1342) which (to quote Senator Kruger):

...will create a system for providing grants to schools for the purpose of developing age appropriate, medically accurate sex education. The legislation also stresses that curricula be developed that encourages communication about sexuality issues between parents and their children.

This bill is one I have highlighted before and I want to back Senator Kruger on this one. My own State Senator, Velmanette Montogomery, has been pushing for this one for some time and has even hosted a program on BCAT on the issue.

And I got this some time back from NARAL via email:

New studies show that one in four teenage girls has a sexually transmitted infection (STI). In New York, 40,000 teens will become pregnant this year.

Our young New Yorkers deserve better.

New York currently has no designated funding for comprehensive sex education in our schools, although New York’s rates of unintended teen pregnancy and STIs are among the highest in the country. We need to give our teens age-appropriate and accurate sex-ed so that they can make healthy decisions for themselves.

The Healthy Teens Act (S.1342) can make this happen.

If this bill is passed, school districts, BOCES, school-based health centers and community-based organizations would be able to apply for grants to create and implement programs that will give New York students real sex ed.

The Healthy Teens Act would provide much needed funding for comprehensive sex education programs in New York State.

For more information, visit:
www.getthefactsny.org/

The New York State Assembly has passed the Healthy Teens Act four years in a row with strong bi-partisan support. It’s time to get our Senate on board. Send a letter to your senator today and urge them to support the Healthy Teens Act.

I want to add that I the fact that 1/4 of teenage girls in NYC has a sexually transmitted disease. This sticks in my head because of another recent article I read indicating that one quarter of all New Yorkers have genetal Herpes. It seems to me these two statistics together are telling us there is something of a crisis in NYC. The Bush/McCain abstinance only programs have been shown to have failed miserably. To quote a recent article:

U.S. health officials believe abstinence-only sex education has had no positive effect on high school students, and may be a factor in the high rates of sexually-transmitted disease in teens. Several health organizations testified before Congress in April 2008 to refute the Bush Administration’s claim that abstinence-only curricula cut teen pregnancy and STD rates.

By contrast, a comprehensive sex ed program including information on birth control has been shown to reduce teen pregnancy and spread of infections. And, contrary to the false claims of the right wing, there is no evidence at all that comprehensive sex ed increases teen sexual activity. The truth is, studies indicate that 90% of Americans engage in premarital sex. Furthermore 75% of Americans had had premarital sex before age 20. These are the facts right now with abstinence only in full swing.

It is time to do better for our kids than the failed Republican abstinence only BS. A good beginning is the Healthy Teens Act (S.1342).