Background

1. The League of Women Voters of Connecticut believes that the problems caused by adolescent pregnancy threaten not only our youth but also the future well-being of the State of Connecticut and therefore must be addressed aggressively on the state level.
2. Therefore, we believe the state of Connecticut must take the following steps: a. Ensure that all school-aged children K-12 have access to comprehensive, age-appropriate sex education that provides them with the necessary skills to make safe and responsible choices in regard to their sexual health. Teacher-training programs should be provided to ensure that such programs are well taught. b. Support school-based health clinics to give adolescents access to a broad range of health care services, including reproductive health. c. Support programs and services that provide information and access to affordable birth control in order to help adolescents delay parenthood and avoid unintended pregnancies. d. Support appropriate services and programs designed to encourage and enable adolescent parents to finish high school and become economically self-sufficient.
3. Specific programs should be developed with the help of broad-based community advisory groups to ensure that there is local support and understanding of these programs.
4. The League of Women Voters of Connecticut opposes placing restrictions on an adolescent's right to obtain a full range of reproductive health services.