Clearly colleges should really step up their game on teaching consent, sex ed and contraception. I know D2 had to do a sexual assault/consent course, but it wasn’t right away. This stuff needs to be day one if not before.
D2’s RA had condoms sitting outside his door- at this point it should be included in a dorm move in package.
I was thinking about a consensual one night stand type of situation.
It’s impossible to imagine that Rice, Emory, Vandy, and WUSTL will continue to draw as heavily from blue states as they do now. There’s no statement of support or resistance that a university can make that is sufficiently reassuring in the face of the utterly frightening, science-denying legislation their home states have passed or will pass. It’s bad enough that these places are now health-care deserts, but now there’s the potential for being imprisoned for having a miscarriage, being forced to carry a rapist’s baby to term, or die from an ectopic pregnancy?
No thanks. And not only for a daughter, either.
@melvin123 has a valid point. I will say that boys need to be taught how to put on a condom and when. It’s from the beginning, not after a little while! The stories I get told from young women about condom use just makes me shake my head.
DH and I both had better sex ed. then our daughters. It’s been watered down abstinence only. He went to a Catholic school and was taught how to use a condom!
At least some of them are going to leave the states where abortions are banned or severely restricted for other states where there are no such restrictions, so the shortage could be highly geographical.
There is no doubt and should be no discussion on the fact that ALL college (high school, middle school….) students, all sexes should have MULTIPLE discussions with knowledgeable people on the whole dating/sexual activities of all kinds game. And have resources easily available without judgement.
Do your job! As a parent start talking with your kids like EARLY. Make it commonplace to talk about relationships. Like in preschool! For a time I worked with teen moms in a health based program where we started building a relationship with them prenatally and if they stuck with it (or were forced to stick with it) until their child was age 3. I talked with my 3 kids (2 girls and 1 boy) about the hard life these teens had often. They heard - and saw, I took them to events - how these young moms were NOT thriving in anyway. And often their kids did not thrive either. They heard how these girls and couples had no options for BC, no self-power to say no to sex, etc. They heard how one girl became pregnant after trying to use birth control - grape jelly. (She was told “jelly” worked). They saw how school became the side hustle, not the main attraction.
My daughter actually thanked me for this the day of the ruling. She said she remembers countless times where we talked about this stuff and normalized the process of discussing. And that I always told them adoption is a choice, but not the only choice but that even I, someone who has advocated for children all my career, recognized for physical and mental health for some, this option might be the right choice.
Anyway, TALK. EXPLAIN. LISTEN. To boys and girls.
Given how draconian and far-reaching the laws/proposed laws are in these states, I think it is safe to assume there will be an impact on _all _ providers of care to people of childbearing age, which is nearly all adult and pediatric providers.
Especially for career-starters who can choose where they want to launch. Forget politics or personal preferences, this amounts to a significant regulatory headache, and among other things it stands to reason that malpractice insurance costs will skyrocket.
Nothing I am seeing suggests that the resources and clout of a big university in such states will be able to shield or indemnify its healthcare workers.
The only abortion provider in North Dakota, located in Fargo, announced plans to move a few miles across the border to Moorhead (MN). A Gofundme was set up to help finance the move with an initial goal of $20,000, and they have so far raised over $500,000 in 2 days! And MN Gov. Walz has signed an executive order directing state agencies not to aid other states if they try to prosecute women who travel to Minnesota for an abortion. So proud to be a Minnesotan right now. Plenty of fine colleges and universities here!
Apologies if this has been posted - I haven’t seen it - but good info.
Yes, I was thankful my mom kept foster babies. She had a total of 86, beginning my freshman year of college. I heard so many sad stories, it made me very cautious!
I agree with your post, plus, I would add that there is no shield for criminal liability.
Not all OB/GYNs provide abortion services now. Before the pills were available, most GYNs sent patients to planned parenthood or similar clinics. When I had an ectopic pregnancy, my gyn did the emergency surgery but nothing about it was treated as an abortion but rather as the emergency it was. I don’t think he would have done an elective abortion as that wasn’t his practice.
Reposting Jon’s note:
I think the private schools in certain states will be very impacted. Despite the school’s wish to provide certain support to students, the schools will be very limited in what they legally can do. The public schools will likely be impacted by receiving few out of state applicants. In either case their ratings will sink.
And based on some points brought up here, it is not only young women who will choose to apply to other schools.
Do universities provide abortion services at their student health centers or are students referred to local providers?
More importantly, do they provide low cost long term birth control options for students?
I don’t think any colleges perform clinical abortions themselves unless they affiliate with a hospital where they are conducted. School health clinics dont handle surgery, chemotherapy, or anything complicated. The hospital associated with a med school might.
Maybe a bigger question is do universities provide comprehensive pregnancy care in their health centers?
ETA: I do know my D’s school does provide IUD placement, which is more involved than just giving birth control pills.
It probably depends on the school. In general, I’d say the answer to your question is no, if the question was re: on campus free student health centers.
Almost all student health insurance plans should cover pregnancy care, a not atypical situation for grad students, spouses, and nontraditional students. Not at the campus clinic, but through regular insurance.
I would expect health insurance plans to cover- I would be more concerned with actual services in the health center- a full time OB/GYN. Some colleges are in the middle of nowhere. Some schools don’t allow cars. How do you get to the many appointments you have to go to.