Male Birth Control

The second class of ‘Norplant for Teens’ policy supplies Norplant systems to consenting teenagers. The government would offer these consenting teenagers Norplant systems for free or for a very low price. For example, the government could charge the reasonable fee of ten dollars, if it wanted to generate revenues and still make Norplant extremely affordable for teenagers. This price could help pay for the program, e.g., the suggested fee could generate about $50 million dollars. It is important though to make sure that the Norplant systems are affordable so that the teenagers have an incentive to choose it. This type of program would be more effective because the Norplant systems will be generally going to sexually active teenagers — the economic argument applies to the policy.

One problem with the proposed policy is difficulty in getting informed consent from a teenager. We have no assurance that the teenager knows all the options she has or that she understands what the drug actually does. Somehow we need a comprehensive method for making certain that teenagers know about their bodies, different forms of contraception, and the implication of each one’s use. For example, we cannot assume that all teenagers understand that Norplant does not protect against sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). A responsible Norplant for Teens program must offer detailed sexual education and counseling.

The second problem with a consent driven Norplant for Teens program is that the sexual education and the Norplant services must be accessible for teenagers. If the program is not accessible to the majority of teenagers, then it will not benefit them no matter how good the program is. There is good evidence that placing such a program in traditional clinics would not target the majority of teenagers. Studies have shown that in both the United States and England, many teenagers believe that the clinics are not meant for them. Both male and female teenagers have reported that they feel uncomfortable in these clinics. Likewise, 38.7% of boys polled incorrectly thought that parental permission was needed to go to the clinic. In order for a Norplant for Consenting Teens program to work, it must occur in an environment that has access to most all teenagers and makes them feel comfortable.