Birth control is key to preventing abortions

Birth control is key to preventing abortions

I hope the group praying to end abortion is successful, but I think promoting contraception is a more effective approach (“Group prays for an end to abortion,” Oct. 18). It is unplanned pregnancies that end in abortion, and Planned Parenthood reports that half of all U.S. pregnancies are unintended.

Bloomberg.com reports that after a decade of decline, the U.S. teen pregnancy rate increased 3% in 2006. That resulted in a 4% increase in teen parenthood and a 1% increase in teens having abortions. The massive amounts spent by the Bush administration on abstinence-only sex education were obviously wasted.

Complete family planning information, including effectiveness rates for various contraception methods, is what is needed in our middle and high schools. Population Connection has educational materials available on its website. Teachers and parents can obtain current, age-appropriate material to augment the inadequate lessons provided by some schools.

All women and girls, regardless of economic status, should have access to reproductive health-care services. Planned Parenthood is currently circulating a petition to make no-cost birth control available to anyone who wants it.

I urge everyone who wants to end abortions to search online for “Birth Control Matters” and sign the petition.

Sharon Weisman

Glendale