The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is preparing to terminate $67 million in teen pregnancy prevention grants after a department review found that many programs used curricula the Trump administration described as “sexually explicit,” “age-inappropriate,” and “medically inaccurate” for minors, according to documents the Daily Signal cited in a June 23 report.
The action, expected to be announced June 26, would affect 53 of 67 active grants awarded during the Biden administration under the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program.
According to the Daily Signal, the programs promoted content including pornography, instructions on how to obtain an abortion without parental consent, support for “gender identity” concepts beyond male and female, and condom demonstrations for middle and high school students.
The department is also expected to issue two new funding opportunities for programs focused on “body literacy,” informed consent, and adolescent health while excluding the content targeted in the review, according to the outlet. One reported opportunity would allocate $8.3 million for interventions focused on promoting adolescent health and preventing teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.
The Daily Signal cited excerpts from several of the reviewed curricula in its report. One high school curriculum, “Positive Prevention Plus,” defined “gender identity” as a person’s “deeply-felt sense” of being male, female, or “something in-between.” The same curriculum also instructed minors on how to get an abortion — even without parental consent — and described abortion as a “very safe procedure when done under medical supervision.”
Another curriculum, “Wrap It Up,” intended for grades 9-12, included material discussing pornography as a way to “spice things up” with partners when used in a “safe, private way,” the Daily Signal reported. A separate curriculum designed for ages 14-19, “Love Notes,” reportedly included an interview excerpt about exposure to violent pornography beginning at age 11 and escalating by age 14.
The report also cited several curricula that instructed students on condom use. The “SHARP” curriculum for ages 15-19 reportedly asked facilitators to discuss with teenagers where to obtain condoms. “Linking Families and Teens” instructed facilitators to teach students how to use condoms and included directions for a demonstration with a wooden model, according to the Daily Signal.
The outlet also cited “Making Proud Choices,” a curriculum for ages 11-16, which had students practice the steps for using an external condom.
“Many of you have never seen or touched a condom,” the “Making Proud Choices” curriculum states, according to the report. “We’re going to practice using external condoms so that you will know what they feel like and how to use them if and when you are ready to use them.”
Another curriculum, “Be Proud, Be Responsible,” included a “role play” scenario between two boys discussing whether to use condoms to avoid HIV, the Daily Signal reported.
According to the report, the Trump administration’s planned funding opportunities will instead prioritize programs that do not promote material that “depicts, describes, exposes, or presents obscene, indecent, or sexually explicit content.”