Access to contraceptives for minors without parental consent

Contraceptives

Many people believe that the moral degeneration of our society continues to be promoted by those individuals who believe that school officials have the right to hand out contraceptives to children. They believe that handing out condoms to high school students is another blatant attempt by the left leaning socialists in American society to cram their ideas of preventative medicine down the throats of the citizens who strive to raise their children in a wholesome and clean environment. Many parents believe that school administrators who advocate such action are misguided in their approach in addressing a complex issue such as teenage sexuality. Some parents say that instead of addressing the problem at its root, the administrators will throw their collective hands in the air and espouse such things as 'they are going to have sex no matter what, so let's tell them it's okay as long as they wear a condom.' Many of the parents believe that this approach lacks a sense of responsibility and judges all human as very base.

However, the judgment that humans are base, and will continue to engage in sexual activities even at younger ages may in fact be a valid one and an examination of the effectiveness of school condom handout programs may actually determine whether such programs actually alleviate the pressure on students to 'have sexual intercourse', and at the very least provide some studies suggest that these programs provide students with protection if they do choose to act in such a base manner.

One recent study found that the use of condoms was oftentimes misperceived by those individuals who might benefit the most from condom use. The study reported that "condom use desires relate to condom use behavior, and if an individual's partner wants to use condoms more often than they would expect, then intervention efforts could be directed at correcting such misperceptions" (Edwards & Barber, 2010, p. 60).

What the study seems to say is that condom use could be much more effective if other behaviors were taught to the students as well. These behaviors could include additional information for those who wish to engage in sexual activity as well as behaviors designed for students who wish to abstain from such events until after marriage.

Science seems divided on whether the promotion of condom meets the stated purpose(s) of such programs. As an example, one recent study reported that "African-American adolescents who received the intervention reported less sexual-risk behavior at 6-month follow-up than did the control group and that the interventions efficacy did not vary by intervention groups" (Jemmott III, Jemmott, Fong, Morales, 2010, p.720). The study tracked a program that was implemented by community-based organizations who would intervene by providing not only condoms but education on condom use as well. The study showed decreased 'risky' sexual behavior. This specific study flies in the face of reports from an expert from Harvard School of Public Health.

Edward Green, a senior research scientist at Harvard and the director of the Aids Prevention Research Project states "the safer people feel when engaging in risky behavior, the more likely they are to increase that behavior" (Gross & Looby, 2010, p. 64). These conflicting results, from two purported experts, presents the dilemma faced by parents and administrators. Neither side can justify (on science alone) their side, and so the rhetoric continues, with neither side winning. The Looby and Gross report does state "Though it seems counterintuitive, the countries that have seen continued increases in the rate of AIDS infection are the ones that have adopted the most aggressive condom distribution campaigns" (p. 64).

If that is true then a program designed to curb teenage sexual activities may, as parents often assert, be promoting additional risky behavior. The question then remains as to how to confront the problem.

This author believes that the continued distribution of condoms can be effective in curbing teenage pregnancies, but only with additional education. Perhaps a program designed to present all alternatives, from abstinence to full sexual activity with condom use could be available to the students. However, such a program would likely be effective only if participation was voluntary and required a parent's acknowledgment for participation.