Sixteen-year-old Rachel Ely's parents had no idea what was wrong with her when they found her in a coma on her bed one morning. She was taken by ambulance to a hospital in Riverside, where doctors determined she was suffering from overwhelming septic, bacterial infection caused by an abortion she obtained without her parents' knowledge. Rachel survived, but was left partially paralyzed and in a wheelchair.
Rachel's story illustrates just one of the dangers of secret abortions: young girls trying to hide their abortions from their parents will ignore or not recognize signs of post-abortion complications and delay seeking treatment until it is too late.
Did the doctor who operated on Rachel know her medical history? Not likely.
Was his license under discipline? Likely. California Medical Board records show that many doctors who end up at abortion clinics have disciplinary actions in their history for incompetence, negligence and even sexual abuse of their own patients.
That's the reality for minors seeking secret abortions: a pregnancy test, 15 minutes of filling out forms, and then an abortion performed by a doctor the girl has never seen before and will never see again.
Proposition 85 will put an end to this dangerous situation in California in which girls as young as 12 can get an abortion without a parent knowing. Secret abortions enable child molesters and statutory rapists to cover up their crimes and then move on to other victims. The younger the girl, the more likely she was impregnated by an adult male predator.
Parents spend years protecting the physical, psychological and emotional well-being of their daughters. They care about her future. A young girl who is pregnant needs the advice and support of a parent, not a stranger in an abortion clinic.
Thirty-four states already have parental involvement laws like Proposition 85. Their experience shows that these laws substantially reduce teen abortion and pregnancy rates, without danger or harm to minors. Despite the opposition's dire predictions of minors turning to illegal abortions, there is no evidence that any minor has suffered harm because of a parental involvement law.
For those cases where a minor lives in an abusive home, Proposition 85 provides a quick and confidential procedure by which she can obtain a waiver from the juvenile court. This procedure also ensures that an abusive situation is brought to the attention of child protective services, so the problem can be addressed, not covered up with a secret abortion.
Opponents claim that Proposition 85 is an attack on abortion rights, as if abortion was one big package, take it or leave it uniformed parents, incompetent doctors, sexual predators and all. Proposition 85 on its face specifically prohibits it from being used to restrict abortion in any other way. "Protect choice" is just something the opposition shouts over its shoulder as it's running away from the real issue: protecting our daughters.
Restore the right of California's parents to protect their minor daughters' well-being. Vote YES on Proposition 85.
