|
Current News |
Birth Control Allowed at Maine Middle
School
By JOEL ELLIOTT
Published: October 18, 2007
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/18/us/18portland.html?ex=1350360000&en=7fb352244936243a&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
PORTLAND, Me., Oct. 17 — The Portland school board
on Wednesday approved a measure allowing
middle-school students to gain access to
prescription birth control medications without
notifying parents.
The proposal, from the Portland Division of Public
Health, calls for the independently operated health
care center at King Middle School to provide a
variety of services to students, including
immunizations and physical checkups in addition to
birth-control medications and counseling for
sexually transmitted diseases, said Lisa Belanger,
an administrator for Portland’s student health
centers.
All but two members of the 12-person committee voted
to approve the plan.
The school principal, Mike McCarthy, said about 5 of
the school’s 500 students had identified themselves
as being sexually active.
Health care professionals at the clinic advised the
committee that the proposal was necessary in order
for the clinic to serve students who were engaging
in risky behavior.
The conference room at the Wednesday night meeting
was packed with parents, students and television
cameras as school board committee members discussed
the issue and heard testimony from experts and
residents.
“It has been shown, over and over again, that this
does not increase sexual activity,” said Pat
Patterson, the medical director of School-Based
Health Centers.
Reaction was mixed.
“This is really a violation of parents’ rights,”
Peter Doyle, a Portland resident, told the
committee. “If there were a constitutional
challenge, you guys would be at risk of a lawsuit.”
Others argued for approval.
“Not every child is getting the guidance needed to
keep them safe,” said Richard Veilleux, who said his
child attends King Middle School. “This is about
giving kids who are sexually active the tools that
they need.”
According to the National Assembly on School-Based
Health Care, about 30 percent of the 1,700
school-based health centers in the United States
provide birth control to students, Dr. Patterson
said. |
|
|
