AFRO-NETS> The Guttmacher Report on Public Policy

[Dieter Neuvians MD <neuvians@harare.iafrica.com>]

The Guttmacher Report on Public Policy
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http://www.agi-usa.org


Teenagers Need Programs to Help Prevent Repeat Births

Repeat births represent more than one in five births to teenagers, or 
approximately 110,000 births. Teenagers who are parenting more than 
one child are less likely to obtain a high school diploma and are 
more likely to live in poverty or receive welfare than those who have 
only one child during adolescence. Yet despite these high individual 
and societal costs, public investment in "secondary prevention" pro-
grams remains minimal. "Reviving Interest in Policies and Programs to 
Help Teens Prevent Repeat Births," in the June 2000 issue of The 
Guttmacher Report on Public Policy, surveys trends in teenage preg-
nancy and some programs that have successfully reduced second births 
to teenagers. In particular, programs that adopt an integrated over-
all health focus, including a strong family planning component, are 
successful in reducing repeat pregnancy rates.

Also in the most recent issue of The Guttmacher Report on Public Pol-
icy:

"Promoting Contraceptive Use and Choice: France's Approach to Teen 
Pregnancy and Abortion" explains the French government's policy ena-
bling nurses to offer emergency contraception in the nation's high 
schools as a natural reflection of the society's openness and comfort 
in dealing with sexuality. While U.S. policymakers try to address 
teenage pregnancy by promoting abstinence, the French government fo-
cuses on improving sexuality education and access to contracep-
tives¢resulting in a teenage pregnancy rate only one-quarter of that 
in the United States. (After this article was published, a French ad-
ministrative court ruled that school nurses could not distribute 
emergency contraception without a prescription.)

A special analysis argues that "Adolescent Care Standards Provide 
Guidance for State CHIP Programs." The analysis compares three sets 
of guidelines for reproductive health services to teenagers - developed 
by the Department of Health and Human Services, the American Medical 
Association, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecolo-
gists - and suggests that states incorporate these guidelines into 
their Children's Health Insurance Programs.

The legislative review in this issue, "The States at Midyear: Major 
Actions on Reproductive Health-Related Issues," summarizes state 
legislative actions on abortion, insurance coverage of reproductive 
health services and teenagers' access to these services, infant aban-
donment, emergency contraception for women who have been raped and 
the use of fetal tissue in research.

All current and archived articles can be downloaded from 
The Alan Guttmacher Institute's Web site:

http://www.agi-usa.org

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