Budget Restores Women's Health Funding

In This Issue

Sharp Drop in Teen Birthrates Among Hispanics

Budget Restores Women's Health Funding

Great news! The Texas Women's Healthcare Coalition is celebrating tremendous success in helping to restore funding for preventive care for the 147,000 women who lost it in 2011. The Texas House and Senate have made women's preventive healthcare a priority this session by restoring funding. All that is needed now is the Governor's signature on the budget bill.

Women's preventive care -- the care that helps women stay healthy, plan for healthy pregnancies, and avoid unplanned pregnancy -- has had strong bipartisan support. Both Republicans and Democrats supported funding for family planning and contraception.

The current budget for 2014-2015 biennium:

Increases state funding to the DSHS Family Planning Program by $32.1 million in state funding to replace Title X (federal) dollars awarded to the Women's Health and Family Planning Assoc. of Texas (WHFPT).
Gives the DSHS Primary Health Care Expansion an additional $100 million for the biennium for women's health care. Of the $100 million, 60% is expected to go for family planning services, including contraceptive care, for women.
Also adds $71.3 million of state funding for the Texas Women's Health Program. Approximately 90% of this is to replace lost federal funding, because of the "Affiliate Ban Rule" enacted in 2011. This funding maintains the Texas Women's Health Program, but shifts the funding source from federal to state dollars.

These funding levels are expected to translate into access to care for the 147,000 women who lost it in 2011. Agreement on these funding levels is a critically important step in repairing the state's tattered women's healthcare safety net.

The investments in family planning in this year's budget will mean that subsidized family planning in Texas will provide access to approximately the same number of clients in 2014-15 as it was in 2010-11, before the big cuts last biennium.

While funding levels were increased, there are still concerns. The women's health safety net will take time to rebuild, and many specialized family planning providers are excluded. Primary care providers may have difficulty achieving the efficiencies, expertise and geographic reach of the specialized clinics.

Budget Summary - Access to Care

As a member of the Texas Women's Healthcare Coalition, the Healthy Futures Alliance (HFA) has advocated for this restored funding. HFA, a San Antonio coalition dedicated to reducing teen and unplanned pregnancy, has both "pro-life" and "pro-choice" members, all are working together on prevention.

Many thanks to all who helped HFA and the Texas Women's Healthcare Coalition lead the fight for Texas women, babies and families!

Sharp Drop in Teen Birthrates Among Hispanics

hispanic teens

A report released in May by the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics found that teen birth rates among Hispanics dropped on average 34 percent in the U.S. -- and by 40 percent or more in 22 states and Washington, D.C. -- between 2007-2011. This is a sharper decline than seen for non-Hispanic black or white teenagers. Overall, the CDC report noted that teen birth rates fell at least 15 percent in all but two states.

In 2011, Texas had the 5th highest teen birth rate at 46.9 per thousand. This represents a 24 percent decrease between 2007 and 2011, with a 28 percent decrease in the corresponding birth rate among Hispanic teens.

Bexar County's overall teen birth rate has dropped 33% between 2008-2012. Likely reasons for the decline include delayed sex and increased contraceptive use among all racial/ethnic groups. Also important: more evidence-based programs are available and are being used. There are more messages about healthy sexuality being conveyed to teens and parents of all races and ethnicities.

Still, Bexar County's rate is 44% higher than the national rate, so we have a long way to go. Babies born to Bexar county teens in 2012 will fill 123 Kindergarten classes in the year 2017. Read the CDC's Report.

Progress in Prevention Efforts Shared at HFA Meeting

Thank you to all who attended the Healthy Futures Alliance (HFA) meeting on May 29. It was wonderful to see so many individuals who care about the future of San Antonio's youth!

Dr. Realini shared big news about the dramatic reductions in teen birth rates in Bexar County. She also briefed the attendees regarding important progress made during the 2013 Texas Legislative Session for women's preventive healthcare funding.

Jennifer Todd, from UT Health Science Center San Antonio, updated the group about the teen pregnancy prevention project UT Teen Health has undertaken in Harlandale, Somerset, South San, Southside, and Southwest ISD's. All of the school districts have approved and implemented evidence-based programs. They are focused on linking teens to teen-friendly healthcare services and are working with diverse communities to develop a sustainable program.

Mario Martinez of Project Worth introduced Jenny Hixon of the UT School of Public Health, who discussed the results of a parent survey conducted in Edgewood ISD. The results indicate that parents want evidence-based, abstinence-plus programming (that includes discussion of condoms and contraception) beginning in middle school and continuing in high school.

Jennifer Moore of Healthy Futures updated the group regarding projects in SA ISD and community agencies. In addition, Health Futures provides the Teen Outreach Program (TOP) at the Walzem YMCA. TOP is an evidence-based youth development program.

Margo DelaGarza introduced Healthy Futures' Community Health Worker Interns and provided updates on parent programs and community outreach.

Participants were given an opportunity to share with each other how teen and unplanned pregnancy among young adults have affected their communities, neighborhoods, work, school, and families.

Our goal is to come together as a community to prevent teen and unplanned pregnancy. We are looking to find ways to work together to address this issue, which affects our schools, the health of our children, our economy, the viability of San Antonio's workforce, and so much more.

As we celebrate this progress, it is important to remember that the rates are still too high and there's so much more work to do!

A special thank you to the Barbara Jordan Center for accommodating us so wonderfully!

HFA is a diverse community coalition to reduce teen and unplanned pregnancy in San Antonio. Some HFA members classify themselves as pro-life, and others as pro-choice, but ALL of us are working together on prevention. We want every young person to be able to reach their goals and dreams-and to become parents when they want to.

Imagine a world where every child is a wanted child...let's make it happen!

"Like" us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @HFTexas.

Welcome, Margo!

Healthy Futures is thrilled to let you know that Margo DelaGarza has accepted a new position as Family and Community Outreach Program Coordinator. Margo has worked with parents and teens at Healthy Futures since 2010, with a primary focus on parent empowerment sessions. She is passionate about empowering parents to have healthy relationships with their teens so that they can be open about discussing sensitive topics like sex.

Margo will be working with Community Health Worker Interns to implement Parents Have the Power programs using a new evidence-based tool, Families Talking Together that focuses on healthy parent-child relationships. Margo will focus on community outreach and parent and family programs to ensure that young people have the best possible chance at a healthy future. She will continue to coordinate the activities of the Healthy Futures Alliance.

Margo's experience includes working as a child abuse investigator, parent educator, after-school program director, and early childhood mental health clinician. Margo is a certified parent educator through the Nurturing Parenting Program, trainer of trainers for the 40 Developmental Assets, trained in Parent-Child Interaction Therapy, and is a licensed professional counselor-intern.

Margo has a master's degree in psychology and is a doctoral candidate at St. Mary's University.

Healthy Futures of Texas is committed to reducing teen pregnancy rates in San Antonio

by providing evidence-based programs to young people and

by providing workshops that empower parents to communicate with their teens about sex.

We advocate for accurate and effective education and for increased access to health services,

and we're working to create a healthy social norm regarding teen sexuality and parenthood.

Help us reduce teen and unplanned pregnancy in San Antonio!

2300 W. Commerce, Ste. 203

San Antonio, Texas, 78207

210.223.4589

info@healthyfuturestx.org

www.HealthyFuturesTX.org