Sex & Relationships
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NY Health Department to unveil first ‘Youth Sexual Health Plan’

The state Health Department is unveiling its first-ever “Youth Sexual Health Plan” to promote safe sex and prevent HIV and unintended pregnancies, The Post has learned.

The plan, obtained by The Post, encourages school districts to start “age-appropriate” comprehensive sex ed programs “beginning in elementary schools.”

It recommends offering HIV testing to anyone 13 years old or older who requests it and screening all young women for chlamydia, a sexually transmitted disease.

And there’s a Plan B.

“Provide emergency contraception to youth ages 15 and older,” the plan recommends.

Health officials said Albany would help local school districts establish “condom availability programs.”

The Health Department’s 22-page guide for school districts and health clinics urges training to make youths “peer educators” who could provide HIV/STD counseling to their peers.

Official said more targeted efforts are needed to reduce HIV among sexually active young black gay men and to help young girls in foster care, where one out of three end up pregnant.

The plan also encourages teaching young people about the merits of abstinence and the risks of taking booze and drugs.

“Reproductive and sexual health are key health issues for adolescents and young adults,” said Acting State Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker. “Providing accurate and comprehensive information to protect adolescents’ health and prepare them for responsible decision making is a public health priority.”

State health officials cited a number of findings to justify the expansive sexual health plan:

  • One in four adolescents is likely to acquire a sexually transmitted disease. That rises to one in two for sexually active people by age 25.
  • Chlamydia is the most common communicable disease in New York state, with more than 100,000 cases reported in 2012. Statistics show nearly two out of three cases are among those in the 15-24 age group.
  • Gonorrhea is the third-most commonly reported STD, with more than 22,000 cases reported in 2012. One out of two of these cases were among young people age 15-24.
  • There were 3,306 newly diagnosed cases of HIV infection in 2012. One in five cases was among individuals under the age of 25.
  • There were 12,733 births to women 19 years old or younger in 2012, with 29 percent of this group age 17 or younger.

Health officials said the comprehensive statewide sex health plan for youths is long overdue, suggesting Albany, fearing a backlash from traditionalists, delayed action for years.

New York City’s Health Department has already instituted many of the recommendations on its own.