A little-known law in NC gives children of any age consent for prevention/treatment of communicable diseases, pregnancy, substance abuse, and emotional disturbance. This means that a child of any age in NC can consent to vaccination, psych drugs, and other controversial therapies without parental knowledge or consent. Large hospital systems are now using this law to exclude parents from medical decision making.
In 2023, NC passed the Parents’ Bill of Rights. The bill appeared to confirm a parent’s right to make health care decisions on behalf of his/her child. However, it included a shocking loophole which preserved the little-known law mentioned above. For more details about the law and this loophole, check out our recent article about its origin.
The fundamental concept of this law is that minors of any age have the same capacity as an adult to consent to a wide range of medical procedures. No evidence or data supports this premise; in fact, overwhelming evidence demonstrates the contrary. A Supreme Court ruling stated in 1979 in Parham v. J.R.: “Most children, even in adolescence, simply are not able to make sound judgments concerning many decisions, including their need for medical care or treatment. Parents can and must make those judgments.”
This means informed consent, an ethically required component of every medical procedure, cannot be provided by children or adolescents.
Medical freedom advocates from around the state have been working behind the scenes to close the loophole. In the process, we have discovered that there are powerful legislators who voted for the Parents’ Bill of Rights but fought behind the scenes to keep the troubling loophole.
The current law asserts that minor children of potentially any age, including children with developmental disabilities, have the ability to assess their own risk and the nuance of risk-benefit analysis with regard to their own health histories. Over 50% of children in the U.S., including North Carolina, have a serious chronic health condition. How can these children give consent to invasive medical procedures without parental guidance?
Minor children are not legally allowed to vote, purchase alcohol or cigarettes, get a tattoo, or consent to other invasive medical procedures. It’s unethical to place the burden of medical decision making on minors.
The law presents broad and open-ended language which would allow any health care provider to coerce children of the prescribed age and any capacity (including developmental disabilities) to consent to a number of medical treatments.
Three of our friendly senators are working to remove the loophole THIS WEEK! Let’s support them by letting their colleagues know that there is broad public support!