Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, January 13, 1994 TAG: 9401130074
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BETH MACY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"We think it would be foolhardy to second-guess the amount of research that's gone into these recommendations," Kathryn Haynie, executive director, said in a press conference, citing concerns that Gov.-elect George Allen may have a different, more conservative teen-pregnancy agenda in mind.
"Prevention money is always at risk in budget cuts," Haynie added. "When budgets are tight, people tend to look short-term."
The proposed $4 million, recommended both by the Virginia Council on Teen Pregnancy and by Lt. Gov. Don Beyer's anti-poverty commission, would provide:
$550,000 for a statewide media campaign promoting the postponement of sexual activity among teens, parental involvement and male responsibility. Modeled on a Maryland campaign, the public-service spots already have been customized for Virginia - thanks to a $200,000 grant from the Virginia Hospital Association - and are scheduled to begin airing early next month.
$2.8 million to local health departments for family-planning services, and mentoring and prevention programs. The money would be divided among localities proportionally, according to teen-pregnancy rates.
$1.3 million to localities for planning and assessment, including $10,000 for Roanoke.
$120,000 to expand and increase the state's community-based Better Beginnings Coalitions, of which there are now 18. In Roanoke - which has the highest teen-pregnancy rate among 15- to 19-year-olds - the Better Beginnings Coalition would receive $10,000 annually from the state, doubling its budget. If city and county leaders could match that contribution, Haynie said, the coalition could afford to hire a much-needed coordinator to oversee local pregnancy-prevention efforts.
Despite its high teen-pregnancy rate, Roanoke has been overlooked for funding by state officials in the past. For instance, state-funded pilot prevention projects were introduced in Alexandria, Norfolk and Richmond last year - at a cost of $200,000 each - even though Roanoke's teen-pregnancy rate was higher.
According to 1991 state Health Department figures, Roanoke had a rate of 97 pregnancies per 1,000 female teen-agers, compared with 86 in Alexandria, 92 in Norfolk and 55 in Richmond. Among 15- to 19-year-olds, Roanoke's rate was the state's highest, at 176 per 1,000.
Although Beyer requested a General Assembly allotment of $5.8 million last year for teen pregnancy, just $800,000 was approved - $600,000 for the pilot projects, and $200,000 for Norplant contraceptive services.
"Basically, nothing has come to Roanoke from the state" for prevention, Haynie said.
Haynie underscored the need for officials at both the state and local levels to look beyond the politics of teen sexuality and devote monetary and human resources to the real issue of reducing teen pregnancy.
Although the need to stress the value of postponing sexual involvement is there, "We need to get over the idea that `Just Say No' will work," she said. "Sometimes it's hard for people who are politically oriented to be realistic."
Addressing concerns about Allen's conservative agenda, she added that "teen pregnancy is one of the leading causes of abortion in Virginia."
More than 3,600 citizens, most of them from the Roanoke Valley, have signed Planned Parenthood's petition supporting the $4 million budget allocation.
"The dollars aren't much, as compared with the money taxpayers pay for the consequences" of teen pregnancy, Haynie said. In welfare programs alone, Virginia spends $284.7 million a year to support adolescent families.
by CNB