Senate Passes Healthy Youth Act to Improve Quality of Sex Education in Massachusetts

BOSTON – The Healthy Youth Coalition applauds the State Senate's passage of the Healthy Youth Act. Today marks the fifth time the bill has passed the Senate since the bill was first filed in 2011. The legislation, S.2686, is sponsored by Sen. Sal DiDomenico and Reps. Jim O'Day and Vanna Howard. 

“Passing the Healthy Youth Act is critical to improving the quality of sex and relationship education taught in our schools and ensuring young people have access to the tools they need to make safer and healthier decisions,” said Jamie Klufts, communications co-chair of the Healthy Youth Coalition. “Updating the state’s health education framework was an important step but does not fully achieve the goals of this bill. Without passing the Healthy Youth Act, there is no guarantee when the framework will get updated again, and no way to know if what’s being taught aligns with the new framework. We are grateful to the Senate for taking action to improve sex ed by passing the Healthy Youth Act, and urge the House to do the same.” 

“Massachusetts should be a state that sets the example for ensuring young people have access to quality, inclusive sex education, but until we pass the Healthy Youth Act to codify comprehensive standards, we'll lag behind other states,” said Jennifer Hart, Vice President of Education, Learning, and Engagement at Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts. "PPLM is proud to be the leading provider of sex education in Massachusetts and we are grateful to our champions in the Senate for passing the Healthy Youth Act. Young people deserve quality, inclusive sex education." 

Additional background: Why we need the Healthy Youth Act

In 2023, Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts conducted a national landscape analysis of sex education in the United States, which shows Massachusetts with a neutral score of zero on sex education, in the company of Missouri, Nebraska, and South Dakota which have some of the most restrictive laws on the books against abortion, LGBTQ+ rights, social emotional learning, and critical race theory.  

Updating the state’s health education framework, which was updated in September for the first time in 24 years, was a major aim of the Healthy Youth Act, but just updating the framework does not fully achieve the goals of the bill. Without passing the Healthy Youth Act there is no guarantee when the health education framework will get updated again – and that the progress made now can't just be undone in the future. There is also no way to know which schools or districts are teaching sex and relationship education or if they are teaching a curriculum that aligns with the new framework. And, without the Healthy Youth Act there is also no way to prevent sex education that is not in alignment with the framework from being taught in public schools. The framework’s impact will be strengthened with passage of the Healthy Youth Act since the legislation would enhance the impact of the framework, provide a timeline for regular reviews and updates to the framework, and institute a data collection requirement.

A poll conducted in August 2023 shows that 88% of Massachusetts voters support sex education being taught in high school and 69% of Massachusetts voters support sex education being taught in middle school. The Coalition’s work will now transition to working with the House to honor the will of the strong majority of people in Massachusetts by passing the Healthy Youth Act into law. 

Learn more about the Healthy Youth Act at healthyyouthact.com. 

 

About the Healthy Youth Coalition:

The Healthy Youth Coalition is a statewide grassroots coalition committed to improving the sex and relationship education taught in Massachusetts schools. Our broad coalition includes young people, parents, educators, public health and health care professionals, sexual and domestic violence prevention experts, advocates for LGBTQ+ health and well-being, and faith leaders. Members of the coalition include EducateUS, Fenway Health, AIDS Action, Partners in Sex Education, Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund of MA, National Association of Social Workers - MA Chapter, Boston Area Rape Crisis Center, Jane Doe, Inc., the MA Commission on LGBTQ Youth, the MA Commission on the Status of Women, and more.