On the recordApril 18, 2012
Mr. Speaker, first let me just thank Congresswoman Chu and our colleagues for standing up for women's health today. Between 2009 and 2010, the United States teen birthrate saw a record 9 percent decrease to 34 births per 1,000. This decrease is due in large part to increased contraceptives use in addition to sex education. Yet even as African American and Latina teens saw large birthrate decreases of 9 and 12 percent, respectively--and we know it's also true for Asian and Pacific American women--all three communities still experience much higher rates of pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases and infections than white teens. The reality is not much better for African American women, who, like teens, experience more than double the unintended pregnancy rate of white women. This is unacceptable. Unintended pregnancy has a very real public health impact, not to mention the increased economic burden on families who are not able to adequately plan for their children. That is why access to affordable birth control is so very important for minority women. ____________________
