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GMHC SLAMS CONGRESS ON LARGEST-EVER APPROPRIATION FOR HARMFUL ABSTINENCE-ONLY EDUCATION PROGRAMS
PROGRAMS SPREAD LIES ABOUT AIDS AND PUT YOUTH IN SERIOUS DANGER
New York, NY — Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC), the world's oldest AIDS organization, denounced the November 1st vote by U.S. House and Senate conferees to increase funding for abstinence-only-until-marriage programs by $28 million to an unprecedented $141 million. GMHC expressed incredulity at the vote, in which Democratic leaders on the Labor/Health and Human Services Conference Committee appropriated more funding than any previous Republican-controlled Congress. Study after study has found abstinence-only to be ineffective and full of false information about contraception and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.
"Time after time we have seen that when we choose ideology over science, we fail," said Marjorie J. Hill, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of GMHC. "Half of new HIV infections in the U.S. are among people under 25. We need to tell young people the truth about HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. Our youth deserve comprehensive education based on evidence, and not clouded by ideology or religious perspective. We are failing the next generation. We call on our leaders to do better."
Since 1996, the federal government has spent over a billion taxpayer dollars on abstinence-only programs, despite numerous federal, state and independent evaluations showing the programs to be counterproductive and fiscally wasteful. In 2000, The Institute of Medicine issued a scathing Congressionally-mandated report on abstinence-only programs. A 2004 report by Congressman Henry Waxman (D-CA) found that over 80 percent of abstinence-only curricula "contain false, misleading, or distorted information about reproductive health." A 2006 study by the independent Society for Adolescent Medicine called the programs "scientifically and ethically flawed" and found that the "efficacy of abstinence-only interventions may approach zero."
Abstinence-only programs have been shown to be completely ineffective in reducing sexual activity among teenagers; in fact, the rate of sexually transmitted infections and HIV has increased among youth since these programs were implemented, with 4 million young people in the U.S. contracting sexually-transmitted diseases each year.
Almost half (47%) of high school students in the United States report being sexually active. Youth who have participated in abstinence-only programs and have pledged to save their virginity until marriage are just as likely to have sex as their peers. Those who participate in abstinence-only programs, however, are one-third less likely than their peers to use contraception when they do become sexually active.
Abstinence-only programs prohibit honest discussions about contraception or condoms, except to distort their failure rates. Youth are being uninformed and misled about protecting themselves from unplanned pregnancies, HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. Considering that young people ages 15-24 account for almost half of all new HIV infections reported in the United States each year, these programs put our youth in serious danger.
Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC) is a not-for-profit, volunteer-supported and community-based organization committed to national leadership in the fight against AIDS. Our mission is to reduce the spread of HIV disease, help people with HIV maintain and improve their health and independence, and keep the prevention, treatment and cure of HIV an urgent national and local priority. In fulfilling this mission, we will remain true to our heritage by fighting homophobia and affirming the individual dignity of all gay men and lesbians. We provide services and programs to over 15,000 men, women and families that are living with or affected by HIV/AIDS in New York City, and outreach and education to hundreds of thousands throughout the world. For more information, please visit www.gmhc.org.
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© 2007 Gay Men's Health Crisis
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