Minors should be required to get parental approval before getting an abortion.

Excellent debate, however think outside of the box, not so rigidly. Here are some things for you to consider -Parents CANNOT simply decide to refuse a medical treatment that is determined to be necessary and essential for their daughter by a physician (such as a medical abortion) (or in the case of this news article from this week, lymphoma) The judge will base this on the patient's wishes (decision) and the patient's best interest (health - regardless of parents choice) http://news.yahoo.com... Now the PRO's argument mainly surround the assumption that 1/2/3/4) summary "quote from PRO" 1) physicians don't assess the maturity of the patient in regards to decision making "However, this is only true in some situations. No law at the state or national level require that doctor's make such assessments." 2) minor's are not mature enough to make important decisions "Children are children; they are naive, ignorant, and a lot of the time do not know their best interests. Because of this parents should be involved in every step of the children receiving an abortion." "Parents should always have to approve the decisions of their children, because that's what they are: children" 3) patient-physician confidentiality does not have to be upheld simply because the law says so. "Just because the law states that doesn't make the law correct." 4) parents are knowledgeable to make the decision whether the daughter needs abortion more than a physician. "I believe that all parents know what is in the best interest of their children, no matter what the circumstances. I do understand that abortion can be life-threatening: which is exactly why children should not be left to tend to it. Instead, parents (who are more experienced in such affairs) shall make a decision that they think will most benefit their daughter" Here is my response to the numbered arguments above ****** you need to consider one thing, this is real-life, not a cliche made up world. you cannot say "parents know whats best" or "parents make decision for kids because kids cant make decisions" 1) "Physicians assess the capacity of their patients in every patient encounter" it is the first sentence of the following publication Tunzi, 2001, "Can the Patient Decide? Evaluating Patient Capacity in Practice" Journal of American Family Physician http://www.aafp.org... 2) i) the above journal article also states that adolescents under 18 are also assessed for decision making capacity (maturity, brains, smartness, knowing good or bad, whatever you may call it) and can make decisions on their own. ii) as well, the following publication by the ACLU indicates that a minor patient can go against the wishes of the parents in regards to abortion http://books.google.com... 3) Patient-physician confidentiality is widely accepted and is meant to protect the patient. I wont cite any sources because this is very common knowledge (google search). as well the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that breaking minor's privacy in regards to abortion hurts the health of minors overall since less will trust doctors later on and seek for treatment. http://www.patientprivacyrights.org... (bottom of page) 4) I will simply disagree with the PRO'S argument that parents can be better judges than physicians in regards to when a medical abortion is necessary to terminate an ill pregnancy that can physically harm the child. (physicans KNOW about the necessity of medical abortion more than parents)