Support the Healthy Teens Campaign

The United States has the highest teen birth rate and one of the highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases among industrialized nations. The findings of recent national studies are alarming. The CDC found that the teen birth rate in the United States rose for the first time in 14 years in 2006 [1] and that 1 in 4 teen girls in the United States has a sexually transmitted disease [2]. Yet, the federal government still funds abstinence-only programs that have proven to be ineffective and dangerous. In 2006, the state of Florida accepted the 2nd largest amount of federal abstinence-only dollars in the country.

The Florida Healthy Teens Campaign represents a broad-based coalition of education, public health, and faith-based organizations that seek to improve the health and safety of Florida teens through comprehensive sex education. The Healthy Teens Campaign supports the Healthy Teens Act, which will require that Florida public schools receiving state funding provide comprehensive, medically-accurate, and age-appropriate factual information when teaching about sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS, family planning, or pregnancy.

The Need in Florida

A University of Florida study released in November 2007 showed that there are no statewide standards for sex education in the state of Florida and that students receive too little information, too late. As a result of abstinence-only programs, Florida teens either get no information or inaccurate information in their classrooms. All too often, then, teens rely on popular culture and peers for information about sex. Florida health educators detail the shocking myths that teens believe and repeat daily, such as drinking bleach to prevent HIV/AIDS transmission or a particular brand of soda to be used as birth control. Teens in Florida need access to the information, skills and encouragement that lead to responsible decision-making about sex. It is essential that policymakers support the Healthy Teens Campaign to ensure that teens receive this life-saving information from trusted, responsible sources.

Abstinence-only programs endanger the health and lives of our youth. The abstinence-only-until-marriage approach to sex education has proven ineffective and dangerous. A large body of evidence exists that clearly details the ineffectiveness of this approach. No professional peer-reviewed journal has found abstinence-only programs to be broadly effective. A 10-year U.S. government funded evaluation of abstinence-only programs released in April 2007 concluded that these programs had NO impact on rates of sexual abstinence, the desired behavioral outcome. [3] A 2004 review of abstinence-only programs by the House Government Reform Committee concluded that many abstinence-only curricula contain “false, misleading or distorted information.[4] Furthermore, none of the leading national or international public health and medical organizations are supportive of these programs. For these reasons and more, sixteen states across the country have opted out of receiving Title V abstinence-only funding from the federal government.

In 2006, the state of Florida accepted the 2nd largest amount of federal abstinence-only dollars in the country. Without access to age-appropriate, medically-accurate, and factual information about sex, Florida teens are not fully equipped to make responsible decisions. We are facing nothing less than a health crisis in Florida. The facts are clear...

Did You Know:

* In Florida, AIDS-related illnesses are the 9th leading cause of death for teens and teens report 31% of all newly acquired cases of sexually transmitted infections.
* Florida has the 6th highest teen pregnancy rate and each year 48,440 teens get pregnant.
* Florida has the 2nd highest AIDS case rate in the country, with 4,960 new AIDS cases in 2005 and 100,809 cases overall.
* Florida has the 6th highest syphilis rate of any state, with 724 reported cases in 2005.
* In 2005, 12% of female high school students and 21% of male high school students in Florida reported having had four or more lifetime sexual partners.

It is irresponsible to withhold information from teens that can protect them from unintended pregnancy and dangerous infections. This truly is life-saving information. The public health evidence is overwhelming that abstinence-only programs do not work, and that comprehensive sex education prevents negative health outcomes for our teenagers.

Teen Pregnancy Costs to the State

Click here for the full fact sheet in .pdf format

Florida has the 6th highest teen pregnancy rate in the country. Between 1991 and 2004 there have been more than 354,000 teen births in Florida, costing taxpayers a total of $8.1 billion over this period[8]. In 2004 alone, the cost of 23,804 births to teen mothers, age 0-19, on Federal, State and Local Governments, and the taxpayers who support them totaled $489,158,000.[9] Of the total costs, 52% were federal costs, and 48% were state costs. Most of the costs of teen childbearing are associated with the negative consequences for the children of teen mothers.

Floridians Support Comprehensive Sex Education

Click here for the full fact sheet in .pdf format.

Floridians know that it is dangerous and irresponsible to withhold life-saving information from our teens. In fact, a full 73% of registered voters believe that public schools should teach a comprehensive sex education program. Over half of Florida voters say that they are more likely to support a state legislator who favors requiring comprehensive sex education in the state. This support is consistent statewide, across political party lines and among voters who are Hispanic, African American, Senior (65+), and parents of school age children. Regardless of age, income or gender, nearly 9 out of 10 Florida voters, including many who describe themselves as evangelical Christians, believe public schools should offer some form of sex education. [10]


[1] CDC National Center for Health Statistics. Births: Preliminary Data for 2006. .

[2] CDC National Center for Health Statistics

[3] Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. Impacts of Four Title V, Section 510 Abstinence Education Programs. Prepared for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. April 2007. Available at: http://www.mathematica-mpr.com/publications/PDFs/impactabstinence.pdf

[4] U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Government Reform. The Content of Federally Funded Abstinence-Only Education Programs. Prepared for Rep. Henry A. Waxman. December 2004. Available at: http://oversight.house.gov/documents/20041201102153-50247.pdf

[5] Guttmacher Institute

[6] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[7] Florida Department of Health

[8] National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy http://www.teenpregnancy.org/costs/pdf/fact_sheet/FL_Final.pdf

[9] National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy http://www.teenpregnancy.org/costs/calculator.asp

[10] St. Petersburg Times administrered a survey to 702 registered voters in Florida during February 2008. Hamilton-Beattie & Staff and Public Opinion Strategies conducted a survey of 700 registered voters in Florida during January 2007.