Plan B in Schools??

When is considered overstepping the boundaries? JennLo 1CL

Plan B In Schools?

1stClassLadies in a previous post informed our readers that a school was planning to distribute condoms at prom. This sparked a lot of opinions and caused a lot of talk both negative and positive. It was later decided that handing out condoms( though it was designed to promote safe sex) was not going to happen. If that wasn't enough uproar it has come to the public attention that 13 NYC high schools are offering the Plan B pill (also known as the morning after pill) to high school girls if they need it.

This was considered a pilot program starting back in January 2011. It offers girls as young as 14yrs old permission to receive the plan B pill from their school nurse up to 72hrs after having unprotected sex. The process would go as follows:

• Walk into the school nurse office and request the pill
• The female would then be given a pregnancy test
• If the result come back as negative she would then be given the plan B pill

According to the Department of health 7,000 girls get pregnant every year and of them more then half get an abortion and 90% of them are unplanned.

With every good intention idea there will be backlash. For some this is just promoting unsafe sex. Yes kids have unprotected sex in some cases anyways but some may view this as a reason to be LESS careful and/or more willing to have a "slip-up" every now and again. This is because they know plan B will be available to them. It is an unfortunate truth that babies are having babies however is this how we want to prevent it? Are we teaching them to live up to their responsibilities as they become young adults?

Understand parents DO have a say in the matter and if you would NOT like your child to participate in the program you can sign a statement saying so. If a parent does NOT sign the form the school can and will administer the pill without their permission. This is why it is very important to be involved in your young child's life. Let them know its okay to talk to you and make sure they understand that whatever the case is they can come to you and it will be handled accordingly. These are the facts people!! If you have a teen girl in high school be sure to check and see if her school offers the pill and then take the steps you need to feel comfortable.