Yesterday Kansas Governor Sam Brownback (R) signed a bill requiring that medical providers obtain a written and notarized indication of consent from both parents prior to offering abortion services to minors. Proponents say the two parent notification requirement would only apply in cases in which the nuclear family was intact; however, such consent laws are extremely harmful to young girls, especially victims of abuse. The change would alter current Kansas law, in which the minor needs the consent of only one parent to have an abortion.
Peter Brownlie, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Kansas and mid-Missouri, stated, “We are disappointed the Kansas Legislature and Gov. Brownback are putting the health and safety of Kansas women and families at risk for purposes of political posturing.”
These provisions in the bill had previously been passed by both chambers of the Republican-controlled Kansas legislature but were vetoed by then Democratic Governors Kathleen Sebelius and Mark Parkinson. Although twenty-four other states have parental consent laws, only Mississippi and North Dakota currently require the consent of both parents.
