Teen Endangerment Act: Putting Politics Before Teens’ Well-Being
Statement From Nancy Northup, President, Center for Reproductive Rights
The Center for Reproductive Rights strongly opposes the abortion bill H.R. 748, passed by the House of Representatives today, and calls on the Senate to reject this harmful legislation.
The Teen Endangerment Act neither protects teens nor supports them, as its sponsors claim. Instead, it endangers their health by forcing them to endure unnecessary delays before having an emergency abortion-no matter how serious the health emergency is. It also fails to protect teenagers dealing with precarious family situations-like alcoholic or abusive parents-by forcing them to rely on those parents or to go to any lengths, including dangerous ones, to avoid doing so.
In addition, the bill will direct the full federal criminal justice system against sisters, friends, and even grandmothers simply for traveling with a teenager across state lines during her time of need. Finally, even when a parent is involved, this legislation blatantly interferes with the private decision made by parents and their daughters by imposing waiting periods that serve no health purpose and are solely intended to change the family’s mind.
By passing the Teen Endangerment Act, the House put an anti-abortion agenda before a teen’s well-being. The Act creates a host of absurd legal hoops for teenagers, parents, and providers that not only confuse and punish teens facing unwanted pregnancies, but seriously harm them.
Read more about the Teen Endangerment Act