Report to the General Assembly (Published)

Document Title

Evaluation of the Virginia Department of Health Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative

Author

Department of Health

Enabling Authority

Appropriations Act - Item 307 B (Regular Session, 2002)

Executive Summary

Growing concern about teen pregnancy and parenting in the United States is due to two primary factors: the sheer number of teens becoming pregnant and having babies and the concomitant adverse economic, health, and social consequences. Despite a 22 percent decline the rate of teenagers giving birth in the U.S. since 1991, the U.S. teen birth rate is still one of the highest among developed nations.
Phase 1 of the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) Teen Pregnancy Prevention Initiative (TPPI) began with the appropriation of $600,000 in general funds dating the final legislative session of the 1993 General Assembly for the purpose of establishing three pilot teen pregnancy prevention programs in the health districts of Alexandria, Norfolk, and Richmond. These three health districts were selected, in part, because of their consistently higher than average or rising (in contrast to state teen pregnancy rates which after years of increases had begun to decline) teen pregnancy rates. AT the start of FY94, each of these three health districts received $2000,000 to develop its pilot program. In response to the General Assembly appropriation, the Maternal and Child Health (MCH) Council's Subcommittee on Teen Pregnancy Prevention formed an interagency advisory committee to establish general guidelines for the three pilot teen pregnancy prevention programs. The interagency advisory committee established seven quidelines adopted by the Subcommittee during the early part of FY94. One of those guidelines stipulated, "VDH, in consultation with the interagency advisory Committee, would contract with an external program evaluator to conduct program evaluation. A portion of the appropriated funds should be set aside for this purpose."
Through an administrative agreement with the Department of Medical Assistance Services (DMAS), Virginia obtained matching federal dollars in Addition to general fund dollars in FY95. This mechanism established an annual base budget of $1.4 million for the VDH TPPI. The general Assembly authorized the additional funds to go towards starting four additional pilot teen pregnancy prevention programs in the health districts of Crater, eastern Shore, Roanoke, and Portsmouth. This marked the beginning of Phase II of the VDH TPPI. IN conformance with the guidelines adopted by the Subcommittee and the charge to VDH to evaluate the programs in order to ensure that the prevention methodologies were successful and transferable to other health districts, evaluation was given priority status. A percentage of the base budget was withheld from the health districts to fund evaluation activities. AT this point, however, a year had already elapsed without an evaluative structure in place for three of the seven pilot programs.