State bill aims to provide reproductive care for minors without parental consent

Young women in our state may soon be able to get reproductive care without needing consent from parents.

A bill that aims to clarify the law when it comes to things like abortion passed in the House in a 117-27 vote.

For decades, women under the age of 18 in Connecticut have been able to get health services like abortions or STI testing without parents needing to be notified. This bill just strengthens that existing law.

In an overwhelming majority, state lawmakers passed House Bill 7213, aimed at guaranteeing reproductive care for minors without parental consent. A key part of the bill includes access to contraceptives like birth control and pregnancy-related care.

Dr. Cara Delaney, an OB-GYN and a mother of two in Farmington, said it’s a good move.

“It creates this blanket of trust in the healthcare environment for adolescent patients,” Delaney said.

She said as a doctor, she always encourages teens and their parents to talk to each other, but said there are cases where that’s not possible, especially if there’s abuse involved.

“We're creating also a safer space for adolescents to share those things so that we can really focus in on how we can help the patients in the best way possible,” Delaney said.

But for Tia Woods of East Hartford, a mother of five, she feels the bill is too overreaching.

“It seems like to me they’re taking away my rights instead of helping empower me as a parent,” Woods said.

While she understands why some children may be reluctant to seek parental help due to abuse, she said there needs to be a happy medium.

“For those parents who are good parents, who are not abusing their children, there has to be a way to give us notice,” she said.

During discussion in the House chamber, supporters of the bill in the House said it protects young people, especially in cases of sexual assault.

“It’s about preventing our teens from becoming pregnant and from facing difficult decisions,” Rep. Cristin Vahey (D-Fairfield) said.

Healthcare providers would still be required to report suspected abuse, but some Republicans feel like more oversight is needed by getting consent from a trusted adult over 21, if not a parent.

“At least there’s somebody there’s somebody that person can talk to about this,” Rep. Craig Fishbein (R-Wallingford) said.

This bill now heads to the Senate for approval. If it gets past there, it then goes to the governor’s desk for his signature.