Modifications to Objectives and Subobjectives

The following discussion highlights the modifications, including changes, additions, and deletions, to this focus area's objectives and subobjectives as a result of the midcourse review.

Three developmental objectives became measurable: emergency contraception (9-5), male involvement in pregnancy prevention (9-6), and insurance coverage for contraceptive supplies and services (9-13). The objective for reproductive health education (9-11) was revised; subobjectives were added to track both informal and formal education on a variety of reproductive health topics.

The wording for emergency contraception (9-5) was changed from "the proportion of family planning agencies that offer emergency contraception at a clinic site" to "the proportion of health care providers who actually provided emergency contraception to clients" to reflect the data collected. The data were collected through a periodic survey of agencies and clinics providing subsidized family planning services in the United States and its jurisdictions.⁶ The survey covered family planning agencies and clinics only and not all health care providers.

Male involvement (9-6) was revised to incorporate the latest information provided by Cycle 6 (2002) of the National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG). In 2002, for the first time, the survey covered males aged 15 to 44 years and fatherhood and reproductive health topics similar to those for females.⁷

Reproductive health education (9-11) was revised to reflect survey data that measured males and females aged 15 to 19 years who reported receiving both formal and informal instructions before turning age 18 on four topics—abstinence, birth control methods, HIV/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) risk reduction through safer sex practices, and STDs. Developmental subobjectives were also included to track formal and informal HIV/AIDS prevention education (9-11e, f, m, and n) and formal STD prevention education (9-11g and h). Data from NSFG are anticipated for assessing these subobjectives by the end of the decade.

Insurance coverage (9-13) was modified to measure results in terms of health insurance plans rather than policies. The modification better reflected the survey's wording.

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