I believe parents should without a doubt be notified before an abortion is to be performed.

First of all, an abortion is a very serious operation that should not be taken lightly. If not done correctly by a certified doctor, it can be very harmful. Deaths and injury have resulted from abortions that were not done properly.

In this day and age, the medical world is filled with a countless number of phony and unlicensed doctors. Without a parents’ consent, teenagers may choose an inexperienced or uncertified doctor to perform a serious and potential life-threatening operation.

Teenagers are generally irrational and could make a foolish decision that could lead to choosing a discrete unlicensed doctor that charges the lowest price instead of the correct and safest doctor.

Furthermore, all other medical operations for minors need parent consent. What makes an abortion any different from the rest?

In addition to the medical purposes, I believe that parents should have the right to know what their children are doing. It is mind-blowing to think how a teenager can get pregnant and then have an abortion without their parents even knowing. Wouldn’t you want to know if your child was having a major surgery?

Sexual predators have also been benefiting from this law. There have been hundreds of cases in which the predator takes the victim to have an abortion, without publicizing it. Most hospitals don’t report abortions among minors because it is currently not required.

In Texas a 12 year-old girl was raped and sexually abused by an older man. The attacker forced the girl into having an abortion. The rapes continued and the girl was impregnated again. She was forced into having a second abortion, which led her to attempt suicide. If a parent needed to approve of the abortion before, this all wouldn’t have happened. Incidents like this are happening all over the country.

Parents are responsible for their children, if they are under the age of 18, and therefore should have the right to know what they are doing.

Vote ‘Yes’ on Prop 85 to keep young girls safe and their parents’ informed.