School-Ordered STD Tests Case Is Settled
February 1, 2004 09:31 AM EST
NEW YORK - The city settled a federal lawsuit filed by five female students who were forced to undergo tests for pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases after they skipped school to attend a "hooky party" where there was sexual activity.
School policy regarding medical tests for students would also be revised under the settlement, the New York Times reported Sunday. The amount the girls would be paid was not disclosed.
The lawsuit was filed by the New York Civil Liberties Union after the eighth-grade girls cut school last April to attend the party.
When they returned to school the next day, they were called to the principal's office and told they had to be tested for pregnancy, HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases, according to the lawsuit. They were told they could not return to school without a doctor's note that included the test results.
The lawsuit claimed the forced tests violated the students' privacy and their right to attend school. Under new guidelines, school officials cannot order such tests or require students to say whether they are pregnant or have a disease, the Times reported.