Microsoft word - 004 - 2007 health boards and school health clinic legislation.doc

2007 HEALTH BOARDS / SCHOOL HEALTH CLINIC LEGISLATION - COMMONALITIES Positive health boards/school-based clinics legislation generally includes one or more of the following aspects: ▪ Allows local school districts to create, develop, and administer school health policies and systems that reflect the values of the local community. ▪ Avoids measures that would place school health policy decisions with statewide or regional health boards. ▪ Requires parental or guardian notification and scrutiny of school health policies and allows for review and contest of policies that they may find inappropriate or harmful. ▪ Does not utilize or mandate state funding for regional or statewide school health boards. ▪ Prohibits the use of Title X monies for school-based clinics. (Title X requires that parents not be notified before contraception is distributed to minors.) ▪ Requires that clinic staff follow all state laws regarding the reporting of statutory rape, incest and other laws. Negative health boards legislation generally includes one or more of the following aspects: ▪ Creates a statewide or regionally based system of consolidated health boards to serve local schools’ health needs. This is often done without regard for parental notification and/or scrutiny. ▪ Allows such statewide or regional health boards to either impose their own school health agenda or install political supporters, who may active oppose the values of the local community, or without any consent of the families affected in the local school district. ▪ Appropriates taxpayer funds to finance such boards/clinics, especially Title X funds. ▪ Often requires or provides either inappropriate or objectionable policies and/or services, including, but not limited to, immunizations, hormonal contraception prescriptions, contraceptive sex education, contraceptive and condom distribution. 2007 National Abstinence Clearinghouse 2007 HEALTH BOARDS / SCHOOL HEALTH CLINIC LEGISLATION ♦ Many teen clinics, teen health boards, and school-based clinics provide contraception and “sexual health services” to students. ♦ All of the federal contraception clinics are required by federal regulations to keep their treatment of minors confidential. No clinics are required to notify or ask consent of parents or guardians before administering contraception drugs or devices or making abortion referrals to minors. ♦ While some clinics may provide dental exams, eye exams, school physicals, and other services to truly improve the lives of underserved children, these services should never be provided without the presence of and active consent of parents. ♦ Parents and guardian are the most important influence on children’s lives. They must be included in decisions that affect teen health, especially the decision to become sexually active. 1. Determine what products and services the local school-based clinics and teen health boards are providing with and without parental knowledge and consent. 2. Determine the taxpayer-funded clinics in your area. State or county health departments should be required to make this information public. If they refuse, file a Freedom of Information request (FOIA). 3. Find out if clinics in your state are federally funded. All of the federal contraception clinics are required by federal regulations to keep their treatment of minors confidential. No clinics are required to notify or ask consent of parents or guardians before administering contraception drugs or devices or making abortion referrals to minors. 4. Determine who funds your local county health department. Often it is the county commissioners or the county board or city council. All of the positions on these bodies are elected. Gather petitions and ask to make a presentation at county meetings. Distribute names and phone numbers of the elected officials and ask people to call prior to the clinic funding votes. Get roll call votes on funding the county health department. Work to get pro-family people on these councils. 5. Hand out fliers at school open houses, churches or other parent-attended events. Ninety percent of parents do not know that their child can’t get an aspirin at school without their permission, but can get a surgically implanted IUD, injection of Depo Provera or prescription for birth control pills without their knowledge. Informing parents is more than half the battle. 6. Be prepared for abortion-advocates arguments about lowering teen pregnancy rates. Be informed about and locate local abstinence-until-marriage programs. 2007 National Abstinence Clearinghouse SAMPLE POSITIVE HEALTH BOARDS LEGISLATION § 101. Local School Health Activities (a) Creation of regional public health coordinating councils prohibited. -- No person, other than those elected to local school boards, may establish a statewide, regional, or county public health coordinating council. No person, other than those elected to local school boards, may determine school health membership and policies. Membership must be designed to reflect the values of the local community. (b) Responsibilities. -- The purpose of the local school health board is to contribute to comprehensive public health in the district. A local school health board, in coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services, as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shall: 1. Conduct a public health needs assessment of the school district; 2. Develop a comprehensive public health plan, including needs, goals, strategies for improvement and performance indicators for the region; and 3. Provide annual public reports in January of each year. (c) Grants and funding. -- Councils may enter into contracts with the State and with other public health and health-related organizations to provide services and programs that promote regional public health coordination and may seek grant funding. (d) Prohibited activities. – 1. No school board may promulgate statutes or regulations that impose a system of mandatory immunizations. 2. No school or clinic located within an elementary, middle or high school shall distribute contraceptive drugs, methods or devices.

Source: http://abstinence.net/pdf/contentmgmt/004__2007_Health_Boards_and_School_Health_Clinic_Legislation.pdf