“According to a 2012 Brookings Institution report, more than 90 percent of abortions occur due to unintended pregnancy” ("Access to Free Birth Control Reduces Abortion Rates”). The cause of the increase in the number of abortions has started the controversy on how to decrease the rate of these abortions each year. There have been many conclusions and ideas on how to decrease the number of abortions and that keep that rate down, but no one has come to a definite solution just yet. The controversy on how to decrease the number of abortions seems to remain to two main solutions. One solution being to require all states to have parental consent laws of underage girls getting abortions. …show more content…
If this was the case and consent laws were mandatory, parents would be able to offer a better solution to the problem and let the young girl know that she is not alone in this process. This has been shown to be an effective way of decreasing the number of abortions because “In states with parental consent laws, the abortion rate declines by 23.1 percent for 17-year-olds, by 19.9 percent for 16-year-olds, and by 16.6 percent for 15-year-olds” (Saunders). The law would have to be centered around consent and not just notification if the United States wanted to decrease as many abortions as possible, due to the study that yielded that “parental consent laws reduce the minor abortion rate by 18.7 percent, while parental notification laws reduce the abortion rate by about 5 percent,” which shows how parental consent laws are superior at decreasing the number of abortions than just a law requiring notification. (Saunders). These laws are able to stop underage girls going through abortions due to the fact that the parents are now aware of the situation and are wanting to help. Without notification and consent, underage girls could be having abortions without their parents even knowing, leaving the parents to “Imagine [their] daughter going through an abortion with no one by her side, her having to be alone through this hard decision in life, and [watching her become] mentally and emotionally miserable” (Pence). It is also good to have all parental consent laws due to the fact that adults are more mature to better handle the situation and “Minors need to have a second take on what they should do with their lives” (Pence). Another reason for parental consent is that it would make “The young woman feel that her parent(s) fully support whatever decision she makes,” leading her to a healthier