Better safe than sorry? Perhaps this is what a Portland school board based its decision on Wednesday, upon approving birth control medication to be available for middle-school students at the school’s health center.

The local school board approved a proposal from city health officials Wednesday evening, reports the Associated Press, thus making birth control available for students at King Middle School.

This is the first middle school in Maine to offer full contraception to its students, including birth control pills and patches, the AP reports. The school’s health center already offered condoms, as part of its reproductive health program.

This program was reportedly implemented after five of the 135 students who visited the center last year reported being sexually active. King students who have parental permission to be treated at the health center have been able to receive condoms.

There are no national figures on how many middle schools, where most students range in age from 11 to 13, provide such services, the agency specified. “It's very rare that middle schools do this,” said Divya Mohan, a spokeswoman for the National Assembly on School-Based Health Care.

The Portland Division of Public Health’s proposal calls for the independently operated health care center at King Middle School to provide a variety of services to students, including immunizations and physical checkups, as well as birth-control medications and counseling for sexually transmitted diseases, the New York Times found from Lisa Belanger, an administrator for Portland’s student health centers.

The proposal also includes a confidentiality aspect – while students need written parental permission to be treated at the center, it is up to them to decide whether they wish to share details of the treatment they receive with their parents.

Belanger also said a student is required to undergo a physical exam by a physician or a nurse practitioner before receiving birth control prescriptions.

The proposal has stirred quite a controversy, as many opposed the idea of providing children aged 11 to 13-years-old with birth control measures.

The 12-person Portland School Committee voted 5-2 for the measure, according to the AP, with chairman John Coynie and Ben Meiklejohn voting against. The first argued that providing birth control is a parental responsibility, while the second said the consent form does not clearly define the services being offered.

School principal Mike McCarthy said about five of the school’s 500 students reported being sexually active. The clinic’s health care professionals supported the proposal, saying it was necessary in order to help students who are engaging in risky behavior, according to the Times.