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Edith Romero

Mrs. Cruz

English 10 Period 3

8 March 2018

Should parental consent be required for a teenager to obtain an abortion

Teens trying to obtain abortion without parental consent began as not a very big issue

because not many knew about abortions. With time it evolved to teen pregnancy rates have

increased and society began to accept as a not big issue. For some, it meant trouble because their

children are getting pregnant and are aborting without parental consent. For others it doesn't

really matter because they would support their child's decisions. According to the HIPAA

privacy rule, “if a state or other law prohibits disclosure of information or records to a parent

without the minors consent, the rule does not allow a provider to disclose without the minors

permission.”

Many support the belief that minors should make their own decisions on their own body.

The american dream is to live in a perfect house with a perfect family but what if your life took a

turn when you were a teen, you got pregnant and couldn’t care for it or feared of abuse. In the

article “The HIPAA privacy rule and adolescents : legal questions and clinical challenges” by

Abigail English and Caral A. Ford displays the fact that if the teen told the doctor about the

abortion in confidence the doctor is not allowed to discuss it unless it endangers the teenager.

The HIPAA rule was made to achieve fro more people to seek medical care without worrying

about information getting out, in this case parents being told about a teens pregnancy and

abortion plans. The author claims “The minor has the right to consent to health care and he's
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consented” The minor can have health care and decide things on own and also have it be

confidential. Also the article mentioned “If a state or other law explicitly permits, but does not

require, information to be disclosed to a parent,” Depending on the state it does not require

information to be disclosed to a parent or guardian.

Some readers may challenge the view that parental consent is required for a minor to

obtain abortion. In the article “Point-counterpoint: parental consent for abortions” by New and

Notes takes issue with minors do need parental consent to obtain abortions. In the opposing good

article it claims “...parents can give that minor psychological reinforcements for the child before,

during and after the medical procedure.” Yes the parent will do what they think is best for you

but this perspective fails to mention that not all parents are supportive with their child's

decisions. There also might be violence in the family. There are many teens pregnant with

violence at home and they fear if they tell their parents they will by physically or emotionally

abused. In a PDF file by Prochoiceamerica.org it discuss a story of girl “My older sister got

pregnant when she was seventeen. My mother pushed her against the wall slapped her across the

face and grabbed her by the hair, pulled her through the living room out the front door and threw

her off the porch. We don't know where she is now.” (p18) due to the violence at home this girl

left and raised her child on her own. Also in the file it brought to light that within minors that did

not tell their parents of their abortion 30% of them have had violence in their family.

It is apparent that minors do not need parental consent to obtain an abortion because of

confidentiality with doctors and violence within the family. Although others may argue that

parents should be notified about what their child is doing, teens getting abortion without parental

consent continues to be problem in some states causing girls to travel out of state to get
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abortions. I believe teen have the right to get an abortion without their parents permission

because teens deserve to choose the life they want.

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Work cited

counterclaim- ​https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4656504

HIPAA privacy rule -

https://www.guttmacher.org/journals/psrh/2004/hipaa-privacy-rule-and-adolescents-legal-questio

ns-and-clinical-challenges

Violence -

https://www.prochoiceamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/1.-Mandatory-Parental-Involve

ment-Laws-Threaten-Young-Womens-Safety.pdf