Lynda Richardson

About the author: Lynda Richardson is a staff writer for the New York Times.

A study that compared the rates of condom use and sexual activity by high school students in schools in New York City and Chicago found that making condoms easily accessible did not increase the rate of teen sex. Students in New York City schools, which have been providing condoms to students as part of an HIV education program, had similar rates of sexual activity as students in Chicago schools, which do not have a condom distribution program.

Astudy says that making condoms easily accessible to public high school students through AIDS education programs does not increase rates of sexual activity, but it does increase condom use. The study compared the rates of condom use...