What Is County Executive Officer Orange County Doing About Teenage Pregnancy?*

Program Utilization: Programs available to pregnant and parenting youth are currently coordinated by the Health Care Agency. However, most programs are not widely known or utilized by Orange County teenagers and/or their parents. Disagree partially with the finding. Response: The Orange County Health Care Agency does not provide countywide coordination of programs for pregnant and parenting teens. The Health Care Agency offers several programs to serve this target population and works in cooperation with other community organizations and providers, including the Orange County Department of Education. Response to Recommendations Incorporation of Cal-SAFE: That the Orange County Health Care Agency in R- 1 connection with the Orange County Superintendent of Schools form and support a program that incorporates some of the integral parts of the Cal-SAFE program to continue assisting pregnant and parenting teens. The recommendation will not be implemented because it is not Response: warranted or is not reasonable. Cal-SAFE has been a successful school-based program funded by the State. Unfortunately, the economic challenges currently faced by State are also faced by the County and severely limit the funding available for the development, implementation, and continuing operation of new programs. In light of current economic challenges, the Health Care Agency will focus on maintaining funding for its existing programs, including the Adolescent Family Life Program and the Nurse Family Partnership, and will continue to support the efforts of the Orange County Department of Education and its local school districts in their quest to maintain funding for proven programs like Cal- SAFE.