TUESDAY, Jan. 18, 2005 (HealthDayNews) -- Proposed legislation making parental notification mandatory when minor-age children receive prescription contraceptives from U.S. federally funded family planning clinics would discourage only a small percentage of teens from having sex, a new study contends.
The legislation also could result in an increase in teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases, according to the research, which is published in the Jan. 19 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Researchers at the Alan Guttmacher Institute in New York City surveyed 1,526 girls younger than age 18 who were seeking services at 79 national family planning clinics.
Sixty percent of the girls reported that a parent or guardian knew they were seeking sexual health services at the clinic. Fifty-nine percent of the girls said they would use the clinics for prescription contraception even if there was a law that required parental notification.
Only 7 percent of the girls said no longer having sex would be one of their responses to such legislation and only 1 percent said it would be their only response. Forty-sex percent said they'd use over-the-counter contraceptions such as condoms and 18 percent said they'd go to a private doctor for prescription contraceptives.
If parental notification became law, 18 percent of the girls said they would engage in risky sexual behaviors -- such as not using any form of contraception -- and 5 percent said they would forgo sexually transmitted disease (STD) services.
"This research confirms that parental involvement laws for minors seeking prescription contraception in family planning clinics would discourage few teenagers from having sex and would likely increase rates of adolescent pregnancy and STDs," the study authors wrote.
More information
The Nemours Foundation has more about teens' sexual health.
