Parental notification. Legs versus babies.

What if you read the following in your local paper?

Fifteen year old skier’s leg amputated without parents’ knowledge or consent

Skier Jason Borden’s left leg was amputated Saturday after he shattered it in a skiing accident. The surgery, which was not considered an emergency, was performed at Thomson’s General Hospital without his parents’ knowledge or consent. Physicians are currently debating whether such surgery was even necessary, citing experts who believe the boy’s leg could have been saved. Jason’s parents, Phil and Cindy Borden are outraged and are currently filing papers to sue Thomson’s.

After reading such an account, wouldn’t you be outraged? Wouldn’t you hope the Bordens would succeed in suing Thomson’s General Hospital out of existence? What if you also heard that the state legislature was considering a measure to allow all such operations to be conducted on minors without even the knowledge of their parents? Wouldn’t you be angry that the rights of parents who love their children and who will be the ones picking up the pieces after the surgery had been so cavalierly tossed aside? Wouldn’t you believe that the same state which requires permission from a parent before a child is allowed to take ibuprofen at school had gone insane?

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Fortunately, the above story is fictitious. Yet something analogous is happening in New Hampshire with regard to the surgical procedure of abortion, and our lack of outrage only shows that we can come to accept shocking events merely because they are commonplace.

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Currently, certain members of our legislature, along with our governor, are working to overturn the law that requires parental notification before a minor can have an abortion. Lest anyone think that this is a minor procedure like having one’s teeth cleaned, consider the following:

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Common short-term side effects include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, pain, cramping, and bleeding.

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Rarer, more serious, immediate side effects include infection, heavy bleeding, perforation of the uterus, damage to the cervix, and incomplete abortion which could require hospitalization.

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Long-term side effects can include increased psychological problems, including a higher suicide rate. A large Finland study found a six times greater rate of suicide for women during the year following an abortion than for women who gave birth.

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Another long term effect is an increase in miscarriage and infertility. A study of 252 women at Harvard found the risk of infertility more than doubled as a result of abortion. Other studies found an even higher rate of infertility resulting from abortion.

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Most studies of women and breast cancer have observed a significant increase in breast cancer rates in women who have terminated their first pregnancy.

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Those who think that a minor should be able to be operated on without her parents’ knowledge or consent will, no doubt, expect the parents or their insurance carrier to pick up the bill should she need to be hospitalized for complications. The girl and her parents will be the ones who are affected if she experiences psychological problems, or infertility or breast cancer later in life. The clinic counselor and doctor will have pocketed their fees and exited her life long ago and won’t be held accountable for the resulting damage.

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Parents should have the right to be notified at the very least when such a serious surgical procedure is going to be performed on their daughter. The current law, which requires notifying only one parent, is the bare minimum of protection the state should provide, and some of our representatives are trying to sweep even that away. Don’t let them. Call or write them and urge them to vote against HB184.

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