As we celebrate Sex Ed for All Month throughout May, the reality is that there is still a gap between the access to sex education and sexual health services that young people should be receiving and what they actually get in their classrooms and in their communities.  

Only 38 states and the District of Columbia mandate sex education or HIV education in schools. When there is sex education or instruction regarding HIV, 13 states do not require the content to be evidence-informed, medically accurate and complete, age and developmentally appropriate, or culturally responsive. This means that many sex education programs do not currently meet the needs of young people. 

The Real Education and Access for Healthy Youth Act (REAHYA) Act would help make this a reality by: 

• Expanding quality sex education and access to sexual health services across the nation; and
• Funding programs that recognize young people’s right to sex education and sexual health services by ensuring federally-funded programs meet a set of criteria that includes being evidence-informed, comprehensive in scope, confidential, equitable, accessible, inclusive of varying gender identities, and responsive to the needs of young people who are Black, Indigenous, and other people of color.

As we celebrate Sex Ed for All Month, take action today by contacting your members of Congress now and urging them to support REAHYA.