Rising STD Rates Spur Push For Condoms In Montgomery Co. Schools

ROCKVILLE, MD — With STD rates rising at an alarming rate, some Montgomery County Public Schools officials have put out a controversial call for the district to offer free condoms to students in every high school.

The push for more sexual health resources reflects recent Centers for Disease Control data showing that rates of sexually-transmitted infections have continued to rise for four consecutive years. In the study, discussed at an August National STD Prevention Conference in Washington, D.C., the CDC found that from 2013 to 2017 syphilis cases nearly doubled, gonorrhea cases increased by 67 percent and chlamydia remained at record highs.

The district first announced it would test a pilot program offering free condoms to students at high schools in Gaithersburg, Northwood, Watkins Mills and Wheaton. Later, a memorandum from school board member Jill Ortman-Fouse and county councilman George Leventhal implored the district to immediately expand the program to all high schools in the district while also studying the effectiveness of expanding the program to middle schools.

"Studies have shown that when condoms are provided in conjunction with education on the prevention of STIs, it leads to a decrease in the initiation of sexual activity and, more broadly, leads to positive health outcomes, particularly among high-risk groups," the memo reads.

The Washington Post reports nearby Virginia counties of Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William do not offer condoms, but that Prince William students can obtain condoms at four county clinics for high schoolers. Alexandria, Virginia, meanwhile, offers birth control at a clinic at T.C. Williams High School

The Post, citing federal data, reported that present day teens forego condoms at a higher rate than students in 2015. In Maryland, 43 percent of students reported not using a condom in 2017, a rise from 39 percent two years prior.

In 2013, WTOP reports, schools in D.C. initiated a program that trained students to become "peer educators." Since then, 300 students have attended a webinar, passed a test and became certified educators.

Michael Kharfen, senior deputy director for HIV/Hepatitis/STD’s/TB Administration at the D.C. Department of Health, told WTOP those students have distributed more than 300,000 condoms and helped educate their peers with correct information on sexual health.

>>> Read the memo in full here.

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