I’ll be honest. The last week has been hard. I had some projects scheduled for this week, but I haven’t been able to focus. I’m so saddened by the election results I could cry … and I have.
One of the reasons I dread the upcoming administration is because I fear for those who are vulnerable. Many in marginalized populations will suffer greatly as a result of policies that benefit the wealthy to the detriment of those less financially stable.
American oligarchs are poised to suck disproportionate wealth out of the economy via tax cuts, in order to line their own pockets, leaving only crumbs for those who already have little. Once the piggy bank is emptied, the pennies are gone. There’s no secret vault.
Most teenage girls who live in poverty depend on Medicaid for health insurance, and the next administration has plans via Project 2025 for extensive changes, including cuts to Medicaid. According to the National Health Law Program, under proposed changes, states will independently administer the program, leading to uneven application of funds nationally.
In addition, states will most likely impose work requirements, which demand ongoing, burdensome paperwork and record-keeping, even though most able-bodied Medicaid recipients already work. In addition, states will not be required to make exemptions for disability or pregnancy. Family planning services would be curtailed, leading to a rise in teen pregnancies.
Pregnancy care without the benefit of health insurance, such as Medicaid, ensures that pre-natal care will be minimal or nonexistent, increasing risks of maternal or infant death. Other risks associated with pregnant teens who live in poverty include compromised health and nutrition, limited educational or employment opportunities, dependence on uncertain or inadequate public assistance, family instability, and more.
I’m thinking today about my former students—teen moms—many of whom came from disadvantaged backgrounds. Their financial situations affected every aspect of their lives, including the fact they ended up needing our services in the first place. Many of them, even those whose parents might have authorized their access to birth control (a frightfully small number) could not afford it.
According to the National Library of Medicine, poverty is not only a major contributing factor, but a consequence of teen pregnancy. In a 2015 study by Garwood et. al., 3281 adolescent females living in poverty were followed over a 15-year period to analyze health data and potential intervention by Child Protective Services.
The authors concluded that within the study population, about 17% of teens who had no history of child abuse experienced teen pregnancy. When both poverty and a history of child abuse were present, about 29% of girls experienced a pregnancy by age 17. The rate among US teen girls in general was just 2.2% the same year.
Many of my students were born to teen moms, continuing a legacy of not only poverty, but teenage pregnancy. (A few of my parents’ mothers were younger than my own children, which was a bit awkward.) Our program’s primary goal was to help them obtain a high school diploma, their first line of defense against lifelong poverty.
Most girls who graduated from our high school have done well, as evidenced by posts shared on social media and through personal communication with them. I suspect some are still financially unstable, but several have college degrees, and almost all have jobs and/or partners with jobs. Their children have a much better chance at a secure future.
I worry about the teens who are pregnant today, though. And those who will become pregnant in the next several years. I continue to worry about their financial status. With the likelihood of a national abortion ban on the horizon, miscarriage or pregnancy complications could result in death when physicians aren’t legally allowed to intervene until fetal death is confirmed. More personally, I worry about my granddaughter’s life should anything go wrong at whatever age she might experience pregnancy.
Government policies which do not effectively address the reproductive health of adolescent girls are more costly in the long run and allow teen pregnancies to proliferate. Even worse, they appear punitive.
The girls who are most at risk from the devastating effects of poverty are also at risk of unplanned pregnancy, and in danger of perpetuating a cycle. They, their children, and their children’s children then pay the price for short-sighted systems and cruel attitudes.
This year’s election inspired hopes for a stable future for teen families. Instead, I am left with anxious dread and a heavy heart.
Janice Airhart 