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Fact: Abstinence Until Marriage Sex Education Is Not Effective for North Carolina Teens
HB 879 Will Give NC Youth Better Education and Better Options 
For Immediate Release - With the introduction of House Bill 879 (a bill to Modify School Health Education Programs) and the proposal to exchange the current Abstinence-Until-Marriage (AUM) sexuality education for an Abstinence Based Comprehensive Sexual Health Education, there has been a lot of misinformation reported by opponents of the bill.  But what are the facts?  Let's take a moment to examine the real indisputable facts about this bill.
  • Fact: 63% of NC Teens have had sex by the time they reach their senior year. NC has the 9th highest teen pregnancy rate in the nation and the highest teen pregnancy rate for Latina teens.  Abstinence Until Marriage only works IF you are actually abstinent.  63% of NC teens are not. (Centers for Disease Control, 2005 (NC)YRBS)
  • Fact: Parents want comprehensive sexuality education to be taught in North Carolina.  81% of NC parents want their children to receive accurate information on contraception and disease prevention.   (http://www.nchealthyschools.org/data/parent/)
  • Fact: Abstinence is the focus of HB 879.  Opponents of this bill like to point out that Abstinence Until Marriage will be removed from current law, however they neglect to mention that it stresses abstinence as the best way to prevent disease and teen pregnancy.  Only the Until Marriage portion is susbstituted for more realistic language, and why is that?  The average age of marriage in America is 26 for women and 27 for men (Source)  The average age for first sexual activity in  America is 16.9 (Source),  meaning that American youth are, on average, sexually active for 10 years before marriage.  We must face the fact that even those who choose not to be abstinent deserve to have the facts about contraception and health in order to avoid a mistake with lasting consequences. 
  • Fact: Abstinence Until Marriage ONLY programs have been scientifically evaluated to have no more effect than no sexual education at all.  "Program and control group youth did not differ in their rates of unprotected sex, either at first intercourse or over the last 12 months. Over the last 12 months, 23 percent of both groups reported having had sex and always using a condom; 17 percent of both groups reported having had sex and only sometimes using a condom; and 4 percent of both groups reported having had sex and never using a condom." (Mathematica Study, commissioned by Congress)
  • Fact: Evaluations of Abstinence Until Marriage programs are often designed to evaluate opinions and not actual sexual behavior.  "Claims for abstinence-only also rest on measurements not of sexual activity, but attitudes. The Bush administration ditched the former in favor of assessing whether, after an abstinence-only program, kids knew that abstinence can bring "social, psychological, and health gains." If enough answered yes, the program was deemed effective. Anyone who is or was a teen can decide if knowing the right answer is the same as saying no to sex." (Sharon Begley, Newsweek May 7, 2007)
  • Fact: Abstinence Until Marriage curricula often rely on fear instead of facts. "Couples who use condoms for birth control experience a first-year failure rate of about 15 % in preventing
    pregnancies. This means that over a period of five years, there could be a 50% chance or higher of getting pregnant with condoms used as the birth control method." (Choosing the Best PATH, Leader Guide, pg. 18)  Fact: When used consistently and correctly, condoms are 98 percent effective in preventing pregnancy.  "AIDS is currently the leading cause of death for people between the ages of 24 and 44." (Choosing the Best LIFE, Student Workbook , p. 36) Fact: according to the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) Vital Statistics System, HIV/AIDS is the sixth leading cause of death for people between the ages of 24 and 44.
  • Fact: 18,727 teens became pregnant in 2005, including 468 10-14 year old girls.  HB 879 would give age-appropriate abstinence-based sexuality education to the youth, stressing abstinence but educating them on their bodies and prevention of pregnancies.
  • Fact: HB 879 will keep control over sexuality education in the hands of parents.  Parents would have the option of opting their children out of sexuality education if they choose. 
  • Fact: HB 879 will not jeopardize a single penny of Federal Abstinence funding. This bill was constructed so as to not jeopardize the $1.4 million North Carolina receives annually in Title V abstinence education funds. Because it does not outlaw abstinence-until-marriage-only education, the State Health Department will still be able to receive and distribute this money. Other states, such as South Carolina and Minnesota receive federal Title V funds while having comprehensive sexuality education on the books. These states have legislation similar to HB 879 and still accept these funds every year.
  • Fact: Teen Pregnancy rates have been falling since 1990, six years before AUM in North Carolina.  Opponents of this bill like to point out that teen pregnancy rates have been falling in North Carolina.  What they don't like to acknowledge is that they started falling six years before the Abstinence Until Marriage bill became law in North Carolina. Under HB 879, Abstinence will still be the expected standard, it will simply be backed up with facts about health and disease prevention.
  • Fact: Our children deserve better than what we're now providing.  Our children are growing up in an increasingly complex, complicated world.  Simplistic solutions don't work; they need and deserve to be treated with respect.  They need to know the facts about sex and disease prevention.  We wouldn't dream of withholding information about the flu; why would we withhold information about STDs?
What Will Be Our Legacy to Our Children?
HB 879 will promote a sexuality education that is more informative, healthier and more proactive.  It will give our youth the facts they need to avoid making mistakes that will affect them for their entire lives.  It is not a license to engage in sex; it is giving our children the knowledge to make the decision to postpone sex until they are emotionally and physically ready to deal with all the consequences.  "We educate and vaccinate our children not so they get sick, but so they avoid getting sick," said Heather Champion, PhD, Board President of the Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Coalition of North Carolina, "We as parents and responsible adults must step up to our obligations to educate our youth on these health issues.  North Carolina cannot afford not to."
About the Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Coalition of North Carolina
APPCNC supports North Carolina in preventing teen pregnancy through advocacy, education and collaboration with local communities.  It provides training and services to those who work with teens and teen parents.  For futher information on APPCNC, visit our website at www.appcnc.org. 
 
For further information, contact:
Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention
Coalition of North Carolina
James Martin
(919) 932-9885
For futher information on HB 879, you may read the text of the bill online at:
Link to HB 879