The Honorable Thom Ellis
North Carolina State Senate/House of Representatives
North Carolina General Assembly
Raleigh, NC 27601-1096
Dear Senator Ellis, I strongly urge you to oppose the HB 693 law that deprives the teenagers in NC of medical confidentiality. We talk about our right to be free, our right to have privacy and to make discretionary decisions about our health, where are they?
The question at hand, “Legislated parent-child relationship vs. Open parent-child relationship?” The legislated parent-child relationship can be summarized as a biased approach for the child when it comes to their healthcare decisions. For instance, a teenager would have to have consent from their parents if they wanted to be treated for STIs, mental health counseling, pregnancy prevention and substance abuse. On the other hand, an open-parent-child relationship permits teenagers to seek treatment with or without the consent of their parents. Some teenagers are not comfortable talking to their parents about certain healthcare decisions therefore; it should not be required by law.
Did you know that with the open-parent-child relationship, teenage pregnancy has declined more than 58% since it peaked in 1990? With the legislated-parent child relationship, the percentage will clearly rise and this will cause more financial, educational and social burden to the state and even the country as a whole. This is evident because there are 50-60% of teenagers who do not discuss sex with their parents. With the passing of this law, teenagers who do not want to talk to their parents about them having sex and wanting to get checked for any possible STI pose the risk of never seeking medical attention. Also, what about those teenagers who are going through some disorders or even some sort of depression and want to seek mental health counseling? Does this mean they do not have the right to ask for help without parental consent? Yes! The parents might have their best interest at heart but this does not mean they should make decisions for them. Clearly what this law is promoting is the fact that parents will make decisions for these teenagers which they think are best for them and thereby undermining their own opinions about these issues.
This law is life-threatening to our NC teenagers. Those with possible unwanted pregnancies might end up committing suicide just because of fear that if they tell their parents they might be judged. What about the girls who are being sexually abused by their dads? Will they have to get consent from these same dads to get tested for STIs? Those with substance abuse cases too might not seek help all because of this law. Our goal should be to open up more venues where our teens can make decisions about their health be it sexual or mental confidentially. In all, legislated parent-child relationship will bring more harm than good to the society as a whole and should not be passed. Thank you for considering my concern on this issue. I look forward to getting your response.
Sincerely,
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