Unintended Pregnancy Prevention is Essential to Women’s Health

Washington, DC—Haywood L. Brown, M.D., President of The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) released the following statement in response to HHS’ cuts to the successful Teen Pregnancy and Prevention Program:

“The Administration’s highly unusual decision to abruptly negate a five-year agreement with current Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program (TPPP) grantees is a step backward for ensuring healthy moms and healthy babies. This program, and others, provide vital research and programming that successfully brought our Nation to an all-time low rate of teen pregnancies – progress we cannot afford to jeopardize.

“Since it began in 2010, TPPP has helped more than a million young Americans make informed decisions about their sexual health, trained more than 7,000 health professionals and supported the work of more than 3,000 community based organizations to provide resources and education to teens.

“Evidence-based TPPP programs help young women align their educational, professional, and financial goals for the future with their health care by educating them about sexual health, including preventing unintended pregnancy and family planning. Unintended pregnancies have higher rates of costly and long-term complications, including pre-term birth and maternal mortality. Reducing America’s high rate of unintended and teen pregnancies means fewer young people at risk for these conditions, and ultimately, healthier moms and babies.

“As ob-gyns, we know that pregnancy and motherhood can be an important part of a woman’s life. In fact, that’s why we support efforts to ensure women can control when starting a family is right for them. We urge the Administration to support these effective, local efforts and not to turn back the clock on the progress made towards reducing high rates of teen and unintended pregnancy.”

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (The College), a 501(c)(3) organization, is the nation’s leading group of physicians providing health care for women. As a private, voluntary, nonprofit membership organization of more than 58,000 members, The College strongly advocates for quality health care for women, maintains the highest standards of clinical practice and continuing education of its members, promotes patient education, and increases awareness among its members and the public of the changing issues facing women’s health care. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), a 501(c)(6) organization, is its companion organization. www.acog.org