Abortion Rules and Regulations

							Gina Abbo
Composition 1
August, Monday 20th 2012




                              Abortion Rules and Regulations

       Even though abortion is currently legal in the United States, There should be

tighter restrictions for the procedure. Many individuals use abortions as a method of

birth control, however the cutoff date, age limit, and how many times one will be allowed

to use this method should be seriously considered. By setting the same standards, rules

and regulations state to state across the country instead of have it currently like it is

varying from one state to the next, it might just cut down on the rising problems that we

currently have in our nation such as teen pregnancy and welfare.


       There are two forms of abortions medical abortion and surgical abortion. Medical

abortions do not involve surgery or other invasive methods but rely on medications to

end pregnancy. A medical abortion involves taking the drug mifepristone; often called

'the abortion pill,' its generic name is RU-486 and its brand name is Mifeprex.

Mifepristone is not available over the counter and must be provided by a health care

professional. A woman seeking a medical abortion can obtain one through a doctor's

office or clinic and should expect two or more visits to complete the process, as another

drug, misoprostol, must be taken to terminate the pregnancy. All surgical abortions are

medical procedures that must be done in a health care provider's office or clinic. There

are several different surgical abortion options. How far along a woman is in her

pregnancy often determines what method will be used (Linda Lowen, 2009). Currently

the latest someone can opt for an abortion is twenty-four weeks into the pregnancy.
Gina Abbo
Composition 1
August, Monday 20th 2012


       The age limit in which one should be eve allowed to have an abortion should

strongly be considered. Majority of states require parental involvement in a minor’s

decision to have an abortion. Most of these states require the consent or notification of

only one parent, usually 24 or 48 hours before the procedure, but a handful of states

require the involvement of both parents. Some states require the parental consent

documentation to be notarized. On the other hand, several states allow grandparents or

other adult relatives to be involved in place of the minor’s parents. Moreover, because

the Supreme Court has ruled that states may not give parents an absolute veto over

their daughter’s decision to have an abortion, most state parental involvement

requirements include a judicial bypass procedure that allows a minor to receive court

approval for an abortion without her parents’ knowledge or consent. Some states

require judges to use specific criteria when determining whether to grant a waiver of

parental involvement. These criteria vary by state, but can include the minor’s

intelligence, emotional stability and understanding of the possible consequences of

obtaining an abortion. Also, a significant number of states require the judge to find “clear

and convincing evidence” that the minor is sufficiently mature or that the abortion is in

her best interest prior to waiving the state’s parental involvement requirement. This is a

stricter standard than is generally required in civil cases. Finally, many parental

involvement requirements are waived if there is a medical emergency or the minor is the

victim of abuse or neglect ("Guttmacher institute state," 2012). Each year, two percent

of women aged 15–44 have an abortion. Half have had at least one previous abortion.

At least half of American women will experience an unintended pregnancy by age 45,
Gina Abbo
Composition 1
August, Monday 20th 2012


and, at current rates, one in 10 women will have an abortion by age 20, one in four by

age 30 and three in 10 by age 45 ("Facts on induced," 2011). About 23% of all

pregnancies end in abortion in the United States. There were 1.21 million abortions in

2005 compared to 4.14 million live births (Wm. Robert Johnston, 2012).


       Even though there currently is no limit on how many times someone may be

allowed to have an abortion this should also be considered to the fact that one may

develop health complications after preforming the procedures time and time again. After

doing the abortion procedure multiple times it becomes that much harder for that person

to get pregnant. Feelings after an abortion vary from woman to woman. Some women

may feel relief, while others may feel guilt or anger. Though post-abortion syndrome is

not officially recognized, many women indicate that they have experienced long-lasting

emotional problems following an abortion (LastWestside Pregnancy Clinic, 2009).

Abortion can cause both short-term and long-term physical complications, and can

significantly affect a woman's ability to have healthy future pregnancies. Physical

complications include cervical lacerations and injury, uterine perforations, bleeding,

hemorrhage, serious infection, pain, and incomplete abortion. Risks of complications

increase with gestational age and are dependent upon the abortion procedure (LaMoira

Gaul, M.P.H.). The abortion mentaly recovery may last for only a few minutes or the rest

on that person’s life it just really depends on that person.


        The reasons why people are having abortions vary form I’m just not ready to

have a child to I currently don’t want a child right now. Questions like these and many

more need to be addressed as soon as possible before we have an academic upon our
Gina Abbo
Composition 1
August, Monday 20th 2012


hands. The more we inform youth now the more they know which in term may help

them to prevent themselves form making the same mistakes that we have. We must

take this seriously and stop it as much as we can now before it is too late and out of our

control. No one ever imagines themselves to be 16 years old with a child. Maybe by

fixing this growing problem can put a dent into another one that we currently have in

country which just might start a snowball effect and help others, but first we have to start

somewhere.
Gina Abbo
Composition 1
August, Monday 20th 2012


                                 Reference/Bibliography

       Facts on induced abortion in the united states . (2011, August). Retrieved from

http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html


       Guttmacher Institute state polices in brief parental involvement in minors’

abortions. (2012, August 1). Retrieved from

http://www.guttmacher.org/statecenter/spibs/spib_PIMA.pdf


       LaMoira Gaul, M.P.H. (n.d.). How abortion harms women's health. Retrieved

from http://www.frc.org/content/how-abortion-harms-womens-health


       LastWestside Pregnancy Clinic. (2009). Health risks. Retrieved from

http://www.wpclinic.org/abortion/health-risks/


       Linda Lowen. (2009). Types of abortion - what are the different types of

abortion?. Retrieved from

http://womensissues.about.com/od/reproductiverights/a/AbortionTypes.htm


       Wm. Robert Johnston. (2012, March 11). Historical abortion statistics, united

states. Retrieved from http://www.johnstonsarchive.net/policy/abortion/ab