AUGUSTA – Rep. Jan Dodge, D-Belfast, introduced a bill, LD 217, Monday to require schools to provide condoms free of charge to all students enrolled in grades 9-12 in order to reduce both unintended teen pregnancies and the spread of sexually transmitted infections. The condoms would be placed in the school nurse’s office.
According to the 2023 Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey, only 55% of sexually active teens reported using a condom the last time they had sex.
“Based on the Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey and our knowledge of human nature, we know that Maine teens are sexually active,” said Dodge. “Many of these students may not have access to adequate protection, and concerns about pregnancy or infection are not a sufficient deterrent. This bill is about access and prevention.”
Dodge decided to introduce this bill after speaking with Janis Hogan, a Belfast resident who spent 24 years in school nursing. She modeled it after Vermont’s first-in-the-nation law, which was introduced by Republican Representative Topper McFaun, who stated that more access to contraceptives and health education might lead to a reduction in abortions.
“Preventing unintended teen pregnancies and STIs is so important,” said Hogan during the bill’s public hearing. “Untreated STIs can lead to health problems, such as organ damage, certain types of cancer and infertility.”
“STI rates are on the rise in Maine, and youth are being impacted,” said the Maine Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Maine Medical Association and the Maine Osteopathic Association in their joint testimony. “According to the CDC, since 2000, Maine’s chlamydia rates have doubled, and since 2010, syphilis rates have more than doubled and gonorrhea rates have nearly quadrupled. In 2022, nearly half of the reported cases of chlamydia, syphilis, and gonorrhea were among 15-24-year-olds. STIs will continue to spread among adolescents in Maine without public health interventions such as increased access to condoms.”
A work session on the bill will be scheduled in the coming days.
Dodge is serving her fourth term in the Maine House and represents Belfast, Belmont and Northport. She is a member of the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee.
Contact: Brian Lee (Dodge) | 305-965-2744