| Dear New Mexicans,We are learning more about school-based health centers in the wake of NM’s new laws that give children access to abortion and transgender care without parental consent or notification. There are currently 80 school-based health centers in NM. Via the NM State House Republicans, we have learned about the intake survey that is given to children when they are seeking care at a school-based health center. This survey comes directly from Governor Lujan Grisham’s Dept of Health. We wanted to make you aware of the survey questions that NM children are exposed to when they take this survey. About the School-Based Health Center Survey for ChildrenThere are two versions of the survey: one for children and another for adolescents (~ages 11-years-old and up). The survey for children (up to age ~11-years-old) includes asking:whether the child is male, female, or transgenderwhether the child is straight, gay/lesbian, or bisexual The survey for adolescent children (ages ~11-years-old and up) includes the above questions as well as:what pronouns the child uses, such as He/Him, They/Them, Se/Hirwhether the child is in an Open Relationshipwhether the child has had sex, including anal, vaginal or oral Depending on the child’s answer to these questions, additional questions which the child may be asked include:whether the child has ever sextedwhether the child has had sex with transgender men or transgender womenwhether the child has had vaginal, oral, or anal sex [with definitions of what these terms mean]whether the child’s sex partner has sex with both men and women Screenshots from the Adolescent Children’s SurveyThe full adolescent children’s survey is 30 pages long and can be downloaded here: https://www.nmfa.us/_files/ugd/212088_9918f38428c844d19c6125c40496984b.pdf Here are some of the pages.          NOTE: Due to these and other issues, many parents are choosing to remove their kids from public school and instead homeschool (or send their kids to private school). Our Guide to Homeschooling in NM is on our website here: https://www.nmfa.us/post/concerned-about-kids-schooling-info-about-alternatives We hope this helps NM parents and families be more aware of the concerning situation with regards to children’s health. Feel free to share this information with others in NM who may be interested. There is a web version you can share here: https://www.nmfa.us/post/nm-doh-inappropriate-sexual-questions-for-children If you have not yet signed the petitions to challenge the laws which give children unrestricted access to abortion and transgender care without parental consent (while penalizing teachers and school nurses with $5,000 fines if they “interfere” with access to these services by talking to parents), please go here to see where you can sign the petitions in your county.https://bettertogethernewmexico.org/not-my-kid/ Donations to support our work are gratefully accepted here:https://www.givesendgo.com/NMFA Standing with you for children’s health,Sarah Smith, Karen Larré, and Melanie Rubin |
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