Grant will help reduce teen pregnancies in Michigan

ANN ARBOR, MI — The Michigan Department of Community Health recently announced that it has awarded more than $1.4 million over three years to four recipients of the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative (TPPI).

Planned Parenthood Mid and South Michigan is among the four organizations which will receive up to $50,000 through the end of the 2008-2009 fiscal year. Each organization will then receive up to $100,000 every fiscal year through Sept. 30, 2012.

The goal of the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative is to provide comprehensive, evidence-based pregnancy prevention programs to youth 10-18 years of age that target factors that lead to the delayed initiation of sex as well as promoting and encouraging abstinence as the safest choice.

Planned Parenthood Mid and South Michigan will be bringing the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative to Washtenaw, Wayne, Jackson, Ingham and Berrien counties.

“Teens deserve honest information about how to protect themselves from unintended pregnancies,” said Lori Lamerand, CEO of Planned Parenthood Mid and South Michigan. “Teen pregnancy is on the rise in Michigan for the second year in a row, and we need to act now to reverse this trend and protect the futures of Michigan teens.” Lamerand went on to say, “We are delighted to see that the Michigan Department of Community Health recognizes the need for accurate, evidence-based education as the most effective tool to reduce teen pregnancies.”

Mirroring the trend in Michigan, the U.S. teen birthrate increased for the second year in a row, according to data released in March by the National Center for Health Statistics. The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy reports the U.S. has the highest rates of teen pregnancy among comparable countries. An estimated 750,000 American teens become pregnant each year.

Numerous studies have analyzed abstinence-only programs and found them to be ineffective.

A study conducted by the University of Washington found that teens who had comprehensive sex education were 50 percent less likely to become pregnant than teens who had no sex education or who were in abstinence-only programs.  A study by The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy reports that two-thirds of the examined sex education programs that focus on both abstinence and contraception had a positive effect on teen sexual behavior. And a 2008 Guttmacher Institute report found that most abstinence programs did not delay initiation of sexual activity.

Planned Parenthood Mid and South Michigan operates 11 health centers in 15counties, providing medical services and sexuality education for nearly 55,000 women, men, and teenagers each year. We believe that everyone has the right to choose when or whether to have a child, and that every child should be wanted and loved.