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Young Women's Abortion Rights

Important: The law about abortion for young women is changing all the time, and may have changed since this website was last updated. Please don’t rely on it alone. For up-to-the-minute information, call the Women’s Law Project, CHOICE, or your local abortion provider.

Access to Abortion Services

Abortion is legal in Pennsylvania and every state for women of all ages. However, in Pennsylvania, most young women aged 17 and under must get permission for the abortion from one parent (or legal guardian) or a judge.

If you’re 17 or under, you can get the informed consent of one of your parents or your legal guardian, or you can meet privately with a judge who can give permission for the abortion without telling your parents. You can also get the abortion in another state that does not require consent of a parent or judge.

You can get a referral to a doctor, hospital, or women’s clinic that provides abortions where you will be respected and your confidentiality will be guaranteed. Call CHOICE at 1-800-848-3367.

Remember: This decision is yours. No one can force you to continue your pregnancy, and no one can force you to get an abortion or use birth control.

3 options if you decide to get an abortion:

1. Getting a parent’s informed consent

Before a woman of any age may have an abortion in Pennsylvania, she must listen to a short lecture on abortion that the state requires doctors and medical staff to give. Then, she must wait at least 24 hours before having the abortion. She must also sign a form prior to her procedure saying that she heard the lecture and consents to the abortion. This process is called “informed consent.” Both you and a parent (or your legal guardian) will have to listen to the state lecture and then wait at least 24 hours between hearing the lecture and the performance of the abortion.

To get your parent’s informed consent to an abortion, you and your parent can listen to the lecture separately. You only need one parent’s consent, not both. You and your parent will both have to sign consent forms. If you want to talk to your parents but are afraid or unsure of how to start, call CHOICE at 1-800-848-3367.

If you and your parent have both given informed consent and 24 hours have passed since you last heard the state lecture, the clinic or doctor can perform the abortion.

2. Meeting with a judge

Some young women decide they cannot tell their parents about their pregnancy. If you do not want to tell your parents, or if your parents know but have refused to give you permission for an abortion, you can have a private hearing before a judge to get an order permitting the abortion. This process is called “judicial bypass.”

Before meeting with the judge, you should call the clinic or doctor who will perform the abortion and arrange to hear the state lecture described in the previous section. You should get this lecture before meeting with the judge.

Second, call a lawyer who will help you with the process. Click here to find a lawyer.

You have the right to a free lawyer appointed by the court to help you get the judge’s approval for your abortion. If you can’t find a lawyer, call the Women’s Law Project (215-928-9801 or 412-227-0301).

Third, fill out the application form for permission for an abortion. The clinic or the court should provide you with the form. Once you have filed your form, you will have your hearing before the judge very quickly, within three business days at the latest.

Click here to learn more about the bypass procedure.

3. Going to another state

New Jersey, New York, and Washington, D.C., permit young women to consent on their own to an abortion without requiring parents to be notified. These laws can change: ask your provider or the Women’s Law Project about current state procedures.

It is legal for teenaged women to cross state lines to get an abortion. However, if you are under 14 and if an adult takes you across Pennsylvania state lines for an abortion without your parent’s consent, the adult may risk a charge of interfering with the custody of a minor. Adults who are accompanying young women under 14 to out-of-state abortion providers should contact a lawyer or the Women’s Law Project.

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