Fears that minors might be forging parents’ signatures in order to get abortions have spurred some N.C. legislators to push a stricter standard.
Though minors in the state already must have parental consent to undergo an abortion, representatives behind a bill introduced Wednesday in the House want a greater burden of proof for parents.
The legislation, introduced by Rep. Mark Hilton, R-Catawba, places a new mandate on teens, requiring that they obtain notarized written parental consent or be accompanied by a parent to the abortion clinic.
State statutes currently require abortion practitioners to obtain the consent of a minor’s parent or guardian before performing an abortion. A minor can petition the district court in her area if she chooses not to obtain this written permission or if her parent or guardian refuses to sign off on the procedure.
But Rep. Stephen LaRoque, R-Greene, a co-sponsor of the bill, says that is not enough. “Parents should be involved when minors are considering something like this,” he said, stressing that the current law is not enough to ensure that involvement.
Paige Johnson, director of public affairs for Planned Parenthood of Central North Carolina, called the bill an unnecessary punishment. “It requires people to go through a humiliating process,” she said.
Johnson said such legislation would punish parents with low-income, hourly wages by forcing them to take off work to accompany their daughter to the clinic. She also predicted embarrassment for families in rural areas in which parents of a pregnant girl might know notaries public and be unable to keep an abortion decision private.
The bill also is a breach of confidentiality existing between patients and their health care providers, Johnson said, describing it as insensitive to situations teens might face.
Six states, plus Washington, D.C., have no laws governing parental consent for an abortion. Ten other states have consent laws on the books that are enjoined by the courts or stalled by the opinion of state officials.
