Medical Students’ Prognosis Unclear With ‘Obamacare’; Many Don’t Understand Law

Being accepted to medical school was once seen as a ticket to a prosperous and fulfilling career, but today’s students face far less certain futures under Obamacare.

As the Affordable Care Act faces key implementation challenges in the coming year, medical schools have responded to the anticipated spike in demand for health care by adding thousands of slots. For educators and students, big questions loom as to what the medical profession holds for America’s next generation of physicians.

SPECIAL COVERAGE: Health Care Reform

“I would say the biggest problem with the Affordable Care Act for people entering medical school is, ‘What is my life going to be like? What kind of living am I going to make?’” said Dr. Beth Haynes, executive director of the Benjamin Rush Society, a free-market doctors advocacy group. “The whole profession is just a political football right now.”

The most pressing question is whether there will be enough residency slots to accommodate the growing influx of medical students. A medical school graduate is required to complete a hospital residency before practicing medicine, but training positions funded by Medicare have been capped since 1997.

Another 32 million Americans are projected to enter the health care market under “Obamacare,” just as the first wave of baby boomers hits 65, the age at which the demand for health care surges. At the same time, many baby boomer doctors will begin to retire.

The result is predicted to create a gaping national physician shortage. The American Medical Association anticipates a shortfall of 62,900 doctors in 2015, a figure that is expected to double by 2025.

“While medical schools are expanding enrollment to meet future needs, [graduate medical education] positions have lagged far behind,” the AMA said in a statement. “As a result, U.S. medical school graduates will exceed the number of available residency slots by as soon as 2015.”

In debt, out of work

The bottom line: Thousands of newly minted MDs may be unable to find work as doctors while wrestling with enormous student loans. The median debt for medical students in 2012 was $170,000, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges.

“We’re looking at the reality of medical students in 2016 graduating and having no residency programs available,” said Christiane Mitchell, AAMC director of federal affairs. “If you can’t guarantee residencies, then our best and brightest may look elsewhere.”

Those who do find residency slots could be practicing medicine in a very different environment from previous generations. Caps on Medicare reimbursements, combined with increases in paperwork, are expected to accelerate the trend of doctors working on salary for large hospitals rather than as independent practitioners.

Jeet Garam, a third-year medical student writing this week on the Forbes.com blog The Apothecary, said the mismatch between medical school graduates and productive residency slots points to a larger failure of the president’s national health care overhaul. The looming bottleneck “should be seen as a cautionary tale about centralizing decision-making in health care,” he wrote.

“I fear that as Obamacare moves more decision-making to the federal level, we will see a similar lag emerge in other areas of our health care system between a need being identified and it being met,” Mr. Garam said.

Still, a poll of 843 medical students shows that most support Obamacare,” even though only 48 percent said they understood the law. Of those who said they understood it, 72 percent said they supported the Affordable Care Act, while 11 percent had no opinion, according to a survey conducted in January 2011 by Dr. Tyler Winkelman, a resident at the University of Minnesota.

At the same time, 69 percent agreed that doctors were obligated as professionals to participate in implementing the law, said the survey, published in the November 2012 issue of JAMA Internal Medicine.

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Highly trained physical science teachers needed to educate students for high-tech economy

Highly trained physical science teachers needed to educate students for high-tech economy - The Hill's Congress Blog @import "/plugins/content/jw_disqus/tmpl/css/template.css"; li.item435,li.item437,li.item439,li.item441,li.item443,li.item497,li.item499,li.item501,li.item503,li.item605,li.item689,li.item691,li.item693,li.item695,li.item697,li.item683,li.item685{display: none;} var _comscore = _comscore || []; _comscore.push({ c1: "2", c2: "10314615" }); (function() { var s = document.createElement("script"), el = document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0]; s.async = true; s.src = (document.location.protocol == "https:" ? "https://sb" : "http://b") + ".scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js"; el.parentNode.insertBefore(s, el); })(); function getURLParameter(name) { return decodeURI( (RegExp(name + '=' + '(.+?)(&|$)').exec(location.search)||[,null])[1] );}(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1&appId=369058349794205"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); if (getURLParameter("set_fb_var") == '1') { jQuery.cookie('set_fb_var', 'true', { expires: 7, path: '/' }); return true; } if (!jQuery.cookie('set_fb_var') && d.referrer.match(/facebook.com/i)) { window.fbAsyncInit = function() { FB.init({ appId : '340094652706297', status: true, xfbml: true, cookie: true, oauth: true }); }; }}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));if((navigator.userAgent.match(/iPhone/i)) || (navigator.userAgent.match(/iPod/i))) {document.write('');}if(navigator.userAgent.match(/iPad/i)) {document.write('');}if(navigator.userAgent.match(/Android/i)) {document.write('');} Follow!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");Advanced Search Options » Home/NewsSenateHouseAdministrationCampaignPollsBusiness & LobbyingSunday Talk ShowsCampaignBusiness & LobbyingK Street InsidersLobbying ContractsLobbying HiresLobbying RevenueOpinionColumnistsEditorialsLettersOp-EdWeyants WorldCapital LivingCover StoriesFood & DrinkNew Member of the Week20 QuestionsMy 5 Min. W/ObamaAnnouncementsMeet the LawmakerJobsVideoGossip: In The Know Briefing RoomRegWatchHillicon ValleyE2-WireFloor ActionOn The MoneyHealthwatchTransportationDEFCON HillGlobal AffairsCongressBallot BoxIn The KnowPunditsTwitter Room HomeSenateHouseAdministrationCampaignPollsBusiness & LobbyingSunday Talk ShowsBlogsBriefing RoomRegWatchHillicon ValleyE2-WireFloor ActionOn The MoneyHealthwatchTransportationDEFCON HillGlobal AffairsCongressBallot BoxIn The KnowPunditsTwitter RoomOpinionA.B. StoddardBrent BudowskyLanny DavisDavid HillCheri JacobusMark MellmanDick MorrisMarkos Moulitsas (Kos)Robin BronkEditorialsLettersOp-EdsJuan WilliamsJudd GreggChristian HeinzeKaren FinneyJohn FeeheryCapital LivingCover StoriesFood & DrinkAnnouncementsNew Member of the WeekMy 5 Min. W/ObamaAll Capital LivingVideoHillTubeEventsVideoClassifiedsJobsClassifiedsResourcesMobile SiteiPhoneAndroidiPadLawmaker RatingsWhite PapersOrder ReprintsLast 6 IssuesOutside LinksRSS FeedsContact UsAdvertiseReach UsSubmitting LettersSubmitting Op-edsSubscriptions   Highly trained physical science teachers needed to educate students for high-tech economyBy Stamatis Vokos, professor of Physics, Seattle Pacific University-04/25/13 02:00 PM ET Tweet !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");

In an increasingly high-tech economy, we cannot continue to handicap students and neglect the workforce needs of our nation. And that is why it is high time the nation addresses the severe shortage of physical science teachers. Far too often, the teacher in a physics or chemistry classroom has neither the content knowledge nor the focused pedagogical education necessary to effectively teach the subject. Only 47 percent of physics and 46 percent of chemistry classrooms are taught by teachers with a degree in the subject. Physics and chemistry top the list of hardest teaching positions to fill year after year.

As a result, students go to college underprepared for demanding courses and unmotivated to pursue STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) courses of study. The situation is unfortunate because STEM disciplines hold great employment opportunities: Overall there are 3.6 unemployed people for every job posting, but in STEM fields, for every unemployed person there are 1.9 job postings. Shortages of STEM workers are particularly acute in the physical sciences where 1 in 4 workers are foreign born.
 
It is shocking that, despite repeated calls for action stretching over more than 100 years, the situation has improved very little, if at all. Things may soon change. President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2014 budget, released April 10, contains the beginning of a national strategy to address teacher shortages in STEM.
 
The nation needs a coordinated strategy to ensure that all teachers in the physical sciences are well prepared, not just a small fraction. The Task Force on Teacher Education in Physics (T-TEP), which recently completed a four-year study, found that “the national landscape of professional preparation of physics teachers shows a system that is largely inefficient, mostly incoherent, and completely unprepared to deal with the current and future needs of the nation’s students.”
 
The good news is we know what works. T-TEP identified several exemplary programs that could serve as models for a more systematic national effort. For instance, Rutgers University runs one of the most active physics and physical science teacher preparation programs in the nation; the program supplies a large number of highly effective teachers to northern New Jersey. School districts express a high degree of satisfaction with these graduates, who receive rigorous preparation, including five courses on physics pedagogy closely integrated with teaching experiences. A national strategy is needed to expand these and similar successes, so they become the norm rather than the exception.
 
Mr. Obama’s budget contains $265 million in new initiatives for K-12 STEM education, including STEM Innovation Networks that partner school districts with universities and other entities to improve STEM instruction. It is encouraging that this plan is aligned with the central recommendation of the T-TEP report, which is to establish a network of university-based regional centers for educating teachers in physics. However, some critical improvements are needed if STEM Innovation Networks are to become the basis for a successful national program to address the nation’s need for effective teachers in the physical sciences.
 
One thing we must take into consideration is that not all STEM fields have the same needs. Programs with the label “STEM” tend to neglect physics, partly due to the relatively small numbers of teachers compared to biology. Yet the need is arguably greater. In contrast to the severe shortage of teachers in physics and chemistry, teacher shortages in biology are much less common and a high percentage of biology teachers (73 percent) have a degree in the subject. Teacher shortages in the physical sciences will not be resolved without a concentrated effort specifically in these disciplines. The UTeach program, which has a goal of graduating more STEM teachers, has had great success in math and biology but little impact on physics. By comparison, the Physics Teacher Education Coalition (PhysTEC), which concentrates specifically on physics teachers, has shown dramatic increases in program graduates.
 
In addition, it is critical to prioritize the education of new teachers. Most of the federal funds are directed toward professional development for practicing teachers, and while professional development is important, this approach is unlikely to solve the shortage of effective teachers in the long run. Practicing teachers who are underprepared to teach physics typically do not have the extensive time required to develop content knowledge and pedagogical skill at a deep enough level. A more robust solution must give top priority to building high quality programs for educating new teachers, so they supply effective teachers in sufficient numbers to meet the national need.
 
We must make sure our students are ready to compete in a high-tech economy, and that means making sure that every physics and chemistry classroom has a well prepared teacher. With a president who strongly supports STEM education, we have an important opportunity to transform teacher education through establishing regional centers and solving these longstanding teacher shortages.  But without getting the details right, we risk continuing the long-established trend of mediocrity.
 
Vokos is professor of Physics at Seattle Pacific University and is chairman of the Task Force on Teacher Education in Physics (T-TEP).

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Bill would ease debt burden on students

By Reps. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) and Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.) - 04/02/13 01:45 PM ET

From the time students enter elementary school, they hear this simple formula for earning a steady income and meaningful work.

Yet, for millions of young Americans, this formula increasingly leads to limited opportunity and mountains of debt. With student loan debt surpassing $1 trillion and unemployment rates for recent graduates lingering near painful post-2008 heights, student debt has become a serious burden on our national economy and on young lives.

While we both firmly believe that a college education remains the right choice for most students, we recognize that our national system for financing college education is in disrepair. We need a new approach that prioritizes college access and reduces the extreme financial burden that often comes with a degree.

In Washington, we talk a lot about not passing debt onto the backs of our children and grandchildren – well there is no more immediate or direct debt on the backs of future generations than the amounts taken from their paychecks to pay back increasingly expensive student loan debts. This debt is hampering their ability to contribute to the economic growth of the American economy. 

Over a lifetime, the excessive burden of student loan debt hurts the ability of some 37 million Americans to purchase homes, start businesses, make investments and develop the next generation of innovations that will drive our nation’s economy.  Student loan debt has outpaced credit card debt and is second only to mortgage debt for many Americans.

To get a sense of this urgent need, consider the scope of the problem. 

Pushed by relentless state budget cuts, average tuition at public universities increased by 8.3 percent in 2010 alone. With their parents battling a tough economy, students have had to take out more and more debt to handle these rising costs. The average borrower graduating from a public or private institution owed an unprecedented $25,250 according to recent figures.

But the problem is not just growing cost: It’s also limited opportunity to afford repayment.

A recent study by Rutgers University found only 53 percent of a random sample of recent four-year graduates of U.S. universities holding full-time jobs. Fewer still were making use of their college-level skills.

It should come as no surprise that students are facing default at increasing rates. As former Congressman Hansen Clarke wrote last year, “students are finding that their degrees, like homes at the height of the real estate bubble, were vastly mispriced assets that are now hard to finance.”  Without bankruptcy protections on student loans, unemployed or underemployed borrowers face compounding fees and little hope of escape.

We have proposed the Student Loan Fairness Act to give these Americans — young and old — a chance to break free from this crushing debt.

The bill provides loan forgiveness for borrowers who have paid the equivalent of 10 percent of their discretionary income for 10 years. Borrowers who are behind on their payments due to a setback like unemployment or illness would be eligible to enroll. In short, no one would be financially ruined by student debt due to a stroke of bad luck.

This bill is about fairness. But it’s just as much about jobs.

Student debt has forced tens of millions of Americans to put off major purchases and placed a tremendous drag on an economy that’s already suffering low levels of consumer demand. Giving student borrowers greater purchasing power would help to turbo-charge our employment recovery.

Our nation’s economic success depends on a well-educated workforce and, in turn, on young people realizing the dream of attending college. To maximize our economic potential and make the dream of attending college a reality we must end the nightmare of excessive student loan debt.

Wilson represents the 24th Congressional District of Florida and sits on the House Education and Workforce Committee. Bass represents the 37th District of California and served as the 67th Speaker of the California General Assembly.

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Students demand prayer breakfast critic be pulled from commencement

Students at Johns Hopkins University are petitioning to replace Dr. Ben Carson as the medical school's 2013 commencement speaker.

The effort, organized by the university's Health and Human Rights Student Group, is in response to a recent argument Carson made against same-sex marriage.

In an interview on Fox News on Tuesday Carson, a rising star in the Republican party and the outgoing director of the division of pediatric neurosurgery, said "it's a well-established, fundamental pillar of society and no group, be they gays, be they NAMBLA, be they people who believe in bestiality — it doesn't matter what they are, they don't get to change the definition."

The petition also cites Carson's speech at the National Prayer Breakfast where the Maryland neurosurgeon criticized a number of President Obama's policies. Obama was in the audience when Carson made the speech.

"We retain the highest respect for Dr. Carson's achievements and value his right to publicly voice political views," the petition, posted Thursday on the student group's Facebook page, reads. "Nevertheless, we feel that these expressed values are incongruous with the values of Johns Hopkins and deeply offensive to a large proportion our student body.

"As a result, we believe he is an inappropriate choice of speaker at a ceremony intended to celebrate the achievements of our class. We hope the administration of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine will select an alternative speaker that better represents the values of our student body and of our great University."

Carson's popularity within the Republican Party has sparked speculation that he could one day run for president or another prominent political office. In an interview on CNN about a week earlier, Carson said he would "seriously consider" a run for the presidency.

"If a year and a half goes by, and people are still clamoring for me to do that, and there's no other very good candidate, I would certainly have to seriously consider it," Carson said in the interview.

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Students play waiting game while Congress catches up on student loan debacle

This summer, millions of students might see the interest rate double on their student loans unless Congress takes action. Doubling of the interest rate will cost the average college student about $1,000 more per year of school.
Think you’re having déjà vu? Last summer, Congress narrowly stopped interest rates from doubling. One year later, here we are facing the same crisis. This time around, students and taxpayers need a strong long-term solution that makes the student loan system more effective and affordable for students and families.

Wednesday morning, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing on the federal student loan program. The consensus among the witnesses who testified at the hearing was that systemic changes are needed. Notably, neither students nor student representatives were among the witnesses called, so here’s our synopsis and response:
•    Student loan interest rates

One major question discussed today was not just what the interest rate on federal student loans should be, but how Congress should set that rate. Currently, federal student loans have a fixed interest rate set by Congress. This rate does not change when the cost of borrowing changes in the market. Several witnesses proposed having a market-based fixed rate. Under this proposal, the interest rate available for federal loans would vary from year to year based on market conditions, but would be fixed for borrowers throughout repayment. There was disagreement as to whether such a rate should have a cap. 

Our take: If we change the rate to a market-based fixed rate, we need protections like a cap to ensure affordability over the long-run. Moreover, some bills we’ve seen change interest rates by shifting debt from the government to students, taking billions out of student aid to reduce the deficit – a move that is bad for students and bad for our country’s future.

•    Income-based repayment

Witnesses also supported increasing participation in income-based repayment as a way of promoting college affordability and decreasing default rates. Under income-based repayment, a borrower’s monthly loan payment is a set percentage of her income. One witness suggested improving financial aid counseling so students know about the repayment options available to them before they find themselves struggling to pay back their loans. Another popular suggestion: automatically enroll all students in a single, income-based repayment program.

Our take: Income-based repayment should be a priority, and we need more students taking advantage of the benefits it offers.  Defaulting students into IBR would ensure that would happen. Federal counseling also needs to be improved, and today, Senators Harkin and Mikulski introduced the Smarter Borrowing Act that aims to do just that.

•    Increase college access and completion

Some participants discussed how a college education is a worthwhile investment. College graduates have lower unemployment rates and can expect to earn more over their lifetimes than those who do not complete college. Having an educated workforce improves the overall economy and benefits society as a whole.

Our take: We know that, they know that, so let’s get to work on making college more accessible and affordable. For example, we need to support investments like Pell grants.

With the looming July deadline, the coming months are likely to invite more congressional noise on the topic. We plan to make sure that students and borrowers are a part of that process. 
Postolowski is a legal fellow at Young Invincibles - a non-profit, non-partisan youth advocacy organization dedicated to amplifying the voices of young Americans and expanding economic opportunity for our generation.

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Indiana Lawmaker Proposes Unconstitutional Bill To Take Away Voting Rights From Out-Of-State College Students

In 1977, the Supreme Court upheld a decision holding that it is unconstitutional to treat college students any differently than other voters in terms of residency requirements to vote. Three and a half decades later, some Republican lawmakers are still trying to prevent college students from voting.

The latest instance is in Indiana, where a state lawmaker just introduced legislation that would prevent students from considering their campus address as their place of residency. Instead, the bill would only allow students to claim the address where they grew up.

The Indianapolis Star has more:

Under House Bill 1311, students who pay out-of-state tuition would not be able to vote in Indiana.

Rep. Peggy Mayfield, the Martinsville Republican who filed the bill, said she’s trying to resolve an issue about determining who is an Indiana resident.

“We’re having people who are not necessarily residents voting in our elections,” she said.

Indiana’s constitution only requires that a voter establish residency for 30 days prior to an election in order to be eligible. Passing a bill that would impose a unique requirement on college students clearly violates the constitutional protections affirmed in Symm v. United States.

Over the past few years, Republicans have made a habit of trying to disenfranchise college students. In Maine, then-Secretary of State Charlie Summers sent a threatening letter to hundreds of college students in 2011 implying that many of them were illegally registered to vote simply because they had grown up out of state. The same year, then-New Hampshire House Speaker William O’Brien tried to discourage students from casting a ballot because he feared they’d vote “liberal.”

One Indiana Republican is already speaking out against Mayfield’s bill. State Rep. Randy Truitt (R) opposed the measure on the grounds that it would depress turnout among students. “We worked so hard on making the students a part of our community,” Truitt said. “And whether they’re there for a short period of time or not, from my perspective, they’re part of our community, and I’m just not in favor of disenfranchising them.”

Indeed, young Americans already vote at lower rates than the rest of the electorate. Even if this bill weren’t unconstitutional, it’s primary effect would be to drive down turnout among students.

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Arizona Bills Require Public School Students To Recite Loyalty Oaths

Public high school students in Arizona will have to “recite an oath supporting the U.S. Constitution” to receive a graduation diploma, if a new bill introduced in the new session of the state legislature is passed and signed into law. The measure, House Bill 2467, was offered by Rep. Bob Thorpe (R), a freshman tea party members who also backs a bill preventing state enforcement of federally enacted gun safety laws. Here is the text of HB 2467:

As written, the bill does not exempt atheist students or those of different faiths from the requirement, though Thorpe has pledged to amend the measure. “In that we had a tight deadline for dropping our bills, I was not able to update the language,” he wrote in an e-mail to the Arizona Republic. “Even though I want to encourage all of our students to understand and respect our Constitution and constitutional form of government, I do not want to create a requirement that students or parents may feel uncomfortable with.”

A separate measure introduced by Thorpe’s colleague would also “require all students in first through 12th grades” “to say the pledge of allegiance each day.” Currently, “schools must set aside time for the pledge each day, but students may choose whether to participate.”

Constitutional experts warn that both proposals are unconstitutional. As American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona Public Policy Director Anjali Abraham explained, “You can’t require students to attend school … and then require them to either pledge allegiance to the flag or swear this loyalty oath in order to graduate. It’s a violation of the First Amendment.”

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School choice: 49 million students still without options

By Robert Enlow, president and CEO, Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice - 01/23/13 11:00 AM ET

Heidi and Frank Green used to worry about their daughters while they were at school. The Clarksville, Indiana couple was concerned about bullying, cursing, large class sizes, a revolving teaching staff, and a general lack of attention for students.

Thankfully, the Greens say their lives have changed for the better as daughters Gillian and Emma are now eager to attend school. Today they are getting quality instruction at their new Catholic school thanks to a voucher program adopted in Indiana two years ago.

“School choice should be everywhere,” said Mrs. Green. “Parents should be able to decide what’s best for their kids.

Gillian and Emma are among the 255,000 students nationwide who attend a private school of their family’s choice using vouchers or tax-credit scholarships. Another 2.3 million students utilize public charter schools as their preferred option.

But there are still almost 49 million public school students throughout the country who do not have such freedom. They must attend their neighborhood public school regardless of its safety, quality, class sizes, teaching staff, or other issues outside their parents’ control. But such restriction doesn’t have to be the case.

Sunday marks the beginning of the third annual National School Choice Week, which runs through Feb. 2. There will be 3,000 events across 50 states including rallies and forums where parents will ask lawmakers for more choices for their kids.

National School Choice Week highlights the private, charter, online and home school education options available to families and those stuck with a school assigned to them by their address. Parents can choose public or private colleges for their children using many federal and state aid programs. They should be able to do the same with K-12 schools.

After major school choice victories last fall in which Washington voters agreed to allow charter schools to open in the state and Georgia voters agreed to an easier path to create more charters, a host of other states will consider additional school choice measures in 2013. Among the highlights:

•    Tennessee’s governor will include a school voucher program in his legislative package.
•    The Texas legislature will consider a program in which taxpayers would receive tax credits for donations they make to nonprofits that provide private school scholarships for low-income students.
•    Mississippi’s governor proposed a private school choice program for students in underperforming public schools.
•    North Carolina’s lawmakers will review proposals for opportunity scholarships and quite possibly education savings accounts, a new type of private school choice available only in Arizona.
•    Alaska lawmakers will vote on a school voucher plan for all students statewide regardless of their family income.
•    Indiana’s new governor has proposed expanding its voucher program to increase scholarship amounts and student eligibility.
•    Maine lawmakers will hear a proposal from their governor to give children school vouchers.

Nobel laureate economist Milton Friedman, the father of the school choice concept, believed that offering parents education options other than their neighborhood school would not only be good for children but would improve education. Studies show school choice is helping children in their new schools and those who don’t participate – something vitally important when so many children don’t get a quality education.

The Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University found that high school dropouts are more dependent on government assistance such as food stamps, housing assistance, and Medicaid. They are also more likely to be in jail or prison, another cost to federal, state, and local taxpayers. And unemployment rates are highest among dropouts, according to the study.

If our society is to address its burgeoning debt problem and give young people a chance to become successful, offering parents an opportunity to access high-quality schools is a path to prosperity for themselves, their children, and society.

In several states, policymakers are ensuring more students have access to the schools, public or private, that work best for them. National School Choice Week is the time to shine a spotlight on those leaders and anyone else working to make sure every family is free to choose in education.

Enlow is president and CEO of the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice, the legacy foundation of Nobel laureate Milton Friedman and his wife Rose.

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Philadelphia high schools to welcome students back with free condom dispensers

The Philadelphia Health Department will install clear plastic dispensers brimming with free condoms at 22 of Philadelphia’s public high schools over winter break.

The schools chosen for the pilot program have the highest rates of students infected with sexually transmitted diseases in the city, Philly.com reports. All students — even those as young as 14 — will be eligible to score free condoms unless their parents sign a form prohibiting them from participating.

The primary issue city officials hope to address with the pilot program is not teen pregnancy, but the growing prevalence of sexually transmitted disease among adolescents.

Teens currently account for a quarter of new HIV infections and STDs in the City of Brotherly Love.

“I support the policy strongly,” Mayor Michael A. Nutter told Philly.com. “This is a serious public health matter.”

“Many of our teenagers, regardless of what adults think, are engaged in sexual activities,” Nutter added. “Discussion about whether or not they should be sexually active is an appropriate discussion, but if they are, then we need to make sure they’re engaged in safe sexual practices.”

“If a teenager wants to use a condom, they should have access to a condom,” summarized Donald F. Schwarz, the deputy mayor for health and opportunity, according to Philly.com.

Schwarz also noted that he is aware of the possibility that the schools could “have hundreds of condoms taken and used inappropriately, for water balloons or something like that.”

The machines will be “supervised,” he promised Philly.com.

Free condom distribution is not a new phenomenon in Philadelphia high schools. A dozen already have “health resource centers” where the condoms are available gratis. The health department also provides contraceptive during voluntary STD screenings at city high schools.

The new condom dispensaries will be positioned “just inside the doorway near the entrance” to nurses’ offices, according to an email that Assistant Superintendent Dennis W. Creedon sent to nurses.

“Opt-out letters are to be maintained by the school office,” Creedon wrote, according to Philly.com “Students are to honor the wishes of their parents. If a student disrespects their guardian’s directive, that is an issue of the home.”

According to Deputy Mayor Schwarz, the city has no plan to advertise the condom dispensers.

“We’re going to allow word of mouth and the Internet and social media to start this off,” he told Philly.com.

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