Shaheen Discusses Sex Education Programming and Funding with Health Care Providers in Sullivan and Lower Grafton Counties

Shaheen visiting the TLC Family Resource Center in Claremont.

(Claremont, NH) – This week, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) visited the TLC Family Resource Center in Claremont, a community resource center for families and individuals living in Sullivan and lower Grafton Counties. There, she spoke with Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington, Claremont Mayor Dale Girard and staff from the TLC Resource Center and Amoskeag Health about the impact that the loss in federal funding—funding that had been routine for the last decade—has had on high-risk youth in the region.

After the Republican-controlled Executive Council denied federal funds to support evidence-based sex education programming for at-risk youth, Senator Shaheen worked with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to bypass the obstruction from the Executive Council and make funds available directly to New Hampshire providers through a competitive grant process. The federal funds blocked by Republican Executive Councilors are provided through the HHS State Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) and have been successfully administered by New Hampshire providers for years.

“The GOP-controlled Executive Council is impacting essential health care services for Granite State youth and undermining private family decisions,” said Senator Shaheen. “In Claremont, I heard how the GOP decision to cut long-standing federal funding has impacted Granite Staters’ access to the valuable, evidence-based sex education information they need.”

“TLC Family Resource Center and Amoskeag Health provide access to vital, evidenced-based programs that are proven to be successful for so many Granite State families and individuals,” said Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington. “So, when the Executive Council delayed and then defunded these critical programs, Senator Shaheen and I quickly got to work sounding the alarm. I am committed to the health and well-being of all Granite Staters, and will continue to work to deliver resources to our providers to ensure everyone has access to affordable health care.”

Last December, Shaheen led the New Hampshire congressional delegation in a letter to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra urging the Department to fill the gap in funding to support programs operated by TLC Family Resource Center and Amoskeag Health, both of which were on the brink of ending given the Executive Council’s disastrous, politicized decision to deny them funding. Shaheen worked to secure funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) State Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) to fill the gap in funding to support evidence-based sex education programs and bring back this critical program to New Hampshire communities. As a result of this push, Shaheen and Democratic Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington, a staunch supporter for sex education funding, also wrote an op-ed in the Union Leader noting that teen pregnancies and STD’s would increase without funding for evidence-based sex education programming that has supported Granite State communities for a decade.

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