Teenage Pregnancy Risk: the impact of parental involvement for contraception

Abstract

Since April 1998, the only public health clinic in McHenry County, Illinois, has required minors to obtain parental consent before receiving prescription contraceptives. This study uses data on the number of births and abortions to compare changes in birth and abortion rates among minors in the county with the changes among minors in nearby counties and with changes among slightly older women. The results fail to show a significant relative decline in the birth or abortion rate among minors in McHenry County after the parental consent requirement. The failure to find a significant effect is robust to examining different time periods, looking only at non-Hispanic white or unmarried minors, and comparing minors to women aged 18-19. Some estimates that include 18-year-olds indicate a positive effect on births.transaction cost, property rights, innovation