The Eighties in America - Salem Press (2009)

AIDS and unsafe sex practices. He called on all U.S.
schools to begin education programs stressing those
dangers and teaching the proper use of condoms to
young students. Over objections from the White
House, Congress approved a shortened version of
the report. In 1987, Koop shocked conservatives by
advocating condom commercials, and in 1988, an
eight-page brochure of AIDS information prepared
by Koop was mailed to every American household
(114 million copies in all). Meanwhile, when Reagan
asked for a report on the effects of abortion on
women’s health, Koop delivered the opinion that
there was insufficient scientific evidence to support
the belief that abortion caused significant health
risks to women.

Impact Koop gave the U.S. Office of the Surgeon
General a higher profile than it had ever enjoyed be-
fore, using the media effectively to inform the public
of two of the greatest health risks of his time, smok-

ing and AIDS. When he resigned in 1989, the pro-

portion of American smokers had decreased from

one-third to one-fourth of all adults. His personal in-

tegrity, willingness to separate politics from scientific

medicine, and concern for the health of all Ameri-

cans earned him the respect of the public and began

a new era in public health.

Further Reading

Bianchi, Anne C.Everett Koop: The Health of the Nation.

Brookfield, Conn.: Millbrook Press, 1992.

Koop, C. Everett.Koop: The Memoirs of America’s Fam-

ily Doctor. New York: Random House, 1991.

Edna B. Quinn

See also Abortion; AIDS epidemic; Congress,

U.S.; Conservatism in U.S. politics; Education in the

United States; Feminism; Health care in the United

States; Medicine.

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