A bill introduced by legislators Tuesday aims to revoke one of Texas' most unwanted superlatives: leading the nation in unintentional and teen pregnancies.
The Texas Prevention First Act, which has been filed in both the House and the Senate, has the backing of several Democrats who say Texas is overpaying to secure women assistance for their unplanned pregnancies. Lawmakers said they hope the act, which would take effect on Sept. 1, will reduce the number of unplanned births by tweaking sex education in schools, spearheading an outreach program and changing how public dollars are spent on women with pregnancy crises.
According to Texas Department of State Health Services data released in 2001, a Texas teen becomes pregnant every 10 minutes and another one has an abortion 28 minutes later.
If passed, sex curricula in schools would have immediate oversight from their boards of trustees and parents, according to the legislation. Resources would also be focused on expanding family planning and the role of the Women's Health Program. The program provides low-income women with critical medical testing, such as pap smears, through Texas Medicaid, according to its Web site.
An unspecified chunk of state money would also fund an outreach campaign designed to teach sexually transmitted disease and pregnancy prevention tactics and highlight services available to women in those situations.
According to a document provided at a mid-day press conference, more than half of all unplanned pregnancies in 2003 came at the expense of public money. The proposed bill emphasizes spending money on individual planning care for women, roughly $170 a piece, instead of allowing Medicaid to fork up nearly $8,500 per year for each pregnancy.
Rep. Mark Strama, D-Austin, called the legislation some of the most important that state lawmakers will consider this session.
"No part of Texas is unaffected by this issue," he said.
Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, said he hopes the idea of curbing teen pregnancy and reducing its financial burdens on taxpayers can unify Democrats and Republicans at a time when partisanship has polarized both chambers.
Strama projected the bill's enactment would save Texas about $278 million and the federal government about $189 million.
Watson said the best remedy for women who are not ready to bear children is to continue humming the old, tired abstinence tune.
"The best way to prevent the termination of a pregnancy is to prevent the pregnancy," he said.
Rep. Rafael Anchia, D-Dallas, said he has seen the effects of teen births in his constituency. He said decreasing the unplanned pregnancy rate would lessen high dropout rates that have plagued schools throughout Texas.
Strama admitted he has no idea how the legislation will be received in either chamber.
"We hope this is an area where left and right can meet in the middle," he said. "If folks from the right want to bring their ideas on this issue, that's great. All of us will entertain any strategy."
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