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The largest school system in Maryland decided Tuesday to offer condoms in the care rooms of more than 20 high schools, with several leaders describing the need as urgent in the context of an increase in sexually transmitted infections.
The Montgomery County School Board unanimously approved the plan a week after condoms were made available in four high schools with on-campus clinics.
Montgomery has joined a number of school systems nationwide, including in the neighboring district of Columbia, which have allowed access to condoms to protect against unwanted diseases or pregnancies.
This measure is aimed at reducing the rise in chlamydia and gonorrhea infections, which have seen double-digit growth in the suburbs.
Montgomery's cases are at their highest level in 10 years – with a leap almost twice as high as that of the entire state – in what the county health worker described as a public health crisis .
"This is an important first step in educating our students about the sharp increase in the rate of infections and providing a resource to help them stay safe when they are sexually active," said Jill Ortman. -Fouse, member of the school board. who led the effort.
When classes began in Montgomery County last week, students from four high schools with clinics – Gaithersburg, Northwood, Watkins Mill and Wheaton – were able to get condoms after a conversation with a nurse, officials said.
Board members voted to extend the initiative as quickly as possible to 26 high schools and alternative programs in the district. They asked district staff to finalize an agreement on Oct. 1 with the County Health Department, which provides staff to high school treatment rooms and clinics.
"I do not think we should wait," said Jeanette Dixon, a member of the board of directors, at the meeting.
Board member Rebecca Smondrowski echoed this urgency and noted that students should ask for condoms and the system would not distribute them randomly. She said this represented an opportunity to better educate about sexually transmitted diseases and protect students.
"It is essential that we intervene right now," she said.
Many Montgomerys were waiting for controversy to break out after the idea of offering condoms was pressed by County Council member George Leventhal and Ortman-Fouse just before the start of the school year. .
But several district officials said relatively few objections had been raised in e-mails or phone calls to the school system.
"I think a lot of people thought we already had condoms in our high schools," said Ortman-Fouse. "It's not a new concept, I think a lot of people have a hard time believing we have not done more now."
The problem was brought to the attention of the public during the summer, when Travis Gayles, head of the county's public health department, pointed to a significant increase in sexually transmitted infections and consequences for young people.
Chlamydia cases throughout the county increased by 17.5% between 2016 and 2017, and gonorrhea increased by 29%, according to health officials. These one year jumps were almost twice as high as those in the state.
More than 900 of those who contracted chlamydia last year were between the ages of 15 and 19, and nearly 130 had developed gonorrhea.
As Ortman-Fouse and Leventhal raised the issue, they noted that condoms are available in Baltimore schools and on the east coast of Maryland, in Dorchester County. They asked for a feasibility study on the availability of condoms at Montgomery County Colleges. But this proposal was not part of the district's action.
Elected officials have put forward research showing that the supply of condoms alongside educational efforts leads to a decrease in sexual activity.
Condoms are widely available in high schools in the District of Columbia – dispensed in clinics and by trained teachers and students designated as peer educators.
The cost of Montgomery's initiative is not clear, but the county's health department will rely in part on a supply of condoms that the state provides – 4,000 per month. If more is needed, the cost can be relatively modest. Mary Anderson, spokeswoman for the health department, said she had heard an estimated price of less than $ 90 per 1,000 condoms.
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