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Know The Law

Resource Family & Short-Term Residential Therapeutic Program (STRTP)

When it comes to supporting the healthy sexual development of youth in foster care, resources families and STRTPs have certain duties to:
Support access to healthy sexual development information and education
  •  Notify the case worker of any barriers a youth or nonminor dependent experiences in accessing sexual and reproductive health information or care
  • Ensure youth have access to age-appropriate, medically accurate, culturally sensitive sexual health information and education when requested
  • Honor their right to live in a safe, comfortable and healthy home where they are treated with respect, regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or pregnancy or parenting status
  • Not impose their own biases, judgements and/or religious beliefs
Facilitate access to sexual and reproductive health care
  • Allow youth to have contraception, including condoms, in their placement
  • Ensure youth in foster care receive health services to meet their medical and mental health needs
  • Facilitate access and transportation to reproductive and sexual health related services in a timely basis by providing that transportation or otherwise arranging it when requested
  • Allow youth to seek sexual and reproductive health care from the provider of their choice
Honor healthy sexual development and privacy
  • Allow youth to have privacy in the doctor’s exam room
  • Allow the youth to have private storage space and use that space to store sexual and reproductive health medications
  • Use the reasonable and prudent parent standard to create normalcy and support the health sexual development of youth in foster care
  • Where does it say this in the law? Click here and here.
  • I’m an STRTP. How do I make sure my policies and practices comply with state licensing regulations? Click here.
  • For tools to help caregivers open conversations with youth, click here and here.
  • Where can I find training and education for resource families and STRTP staff? Click here.
  • For fast facts about the California Healthy Youth Act, click here.
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