The Bush Administration is planning an end run to entice states into applying for abstinence-only funds that Congress has yet to authorize, and potentially tie the hands of the next administration.

Written by Scott Swenson for RH Reality Check.

The Swift Boats are coming ashore, hitting Obama on sexuality education. But the facts will sink them. Americans are very clear in their support for reality-based sex ed.

Originally published at RH Relality Check - News, information and analysis for reproductive health and justice.

Lately there has been a debate on sex education in American schools.  There is a camp that proposes that students should be taught how to use contraceptives, safe sex methods, and the responsibilities and risks involved with having sex.  Those in the other camp propose that abstinence only should be taught and that showing safe methods of sex only encourages the participation in sexual activities.

I agree with the abstinence-only camp and propose that this method be applied much more liberally to our academic policies.

America’s Sex Problem

There was a report released by the Center for Disease Control on March 11, 2008 that shows some disturbing trends in American Teens (that I’m sure is replicated in Adults as well).

As reported by the AP:

At least one in four teenage American girls has a sexually transmitted disease, suggests a first-of-its-kind federal study that startled some adolescent-health experts.

[snip]

The overall STD rate among the 838 girls in the study was 26 percent, which translates to more than 3 million girls nationwide, researchers with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found. They released the results Tuesday at an STD prevention conference in Chicago.

Teen pregnancy is also on a rise.

Hop skip or jump. . .

Congressman Jim Moran (D-VA) and 76 lawmakers have sent House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey a letter requesting that funding for failed abstinence-only sexual education programs be left out of this year’s Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Appropriations Bill.

http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/...

Here's a completely unacceptable statistic:  According to the CDC, more than three million teen girls have a sexually transmitted infection (STI).  That's one in four.

The moment to improve PEPFAR based on reality and public health passed before the House Foreign Affairs Committee was ever convened. Americans frustrated with political game playing over dedicated problem solving will see this as one more reason Washington must change.

Read the original and discuss at RHRealityCheck.org - Information, News and Anlysis for Reproductive Health.

The teenage birth rate rose 3% in the United States in 2006. Take a look at this New York Times article for the details. This is the first increase in the teenage birth rate since 1991. Thanks to the Bush Administration and their right-wing allies in Congress, we have seen huge increases in federal funding for ‘abstinence-only sex education.’ Anybody see a connection here?

Join me after the jump for more.

Ten leading scientists send an open letter to Congress urging them to discontinue funding for failed abstinence-only programs and offering to advise Congress on an alternative.

http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/...