What can my son do if he might be the father and does not want the mother to have an abortion?
Full Question:
My son was told that a girl he met and had a one night stand with is now pregnant. She is 18 years old. Her mother expects my son to pay 100% of the cost for the abortion. He does not want the child to be aborted. He also has been unemployed for 7 months. There is no way to confirm that this pregnancy involves my son.
04/29/2009 |
Category: Paternity |
State: Michigan |
#16471
Answer:
Michigan doesn't require the unmarried father's consent for an abortion. It is possible for the mother or alleged father to bring a paternity action. If the child is not born at the time set for trial, the case, unless the defendant mother or defendant father consents to trial, shall be postponed until the child is born.
The parents of a child born out of wedlock are liable for the necessary support and education of the child. They are also liable for the child's funeral expenses. In a paternity action, the court may find the father is liable to pay the expenses of the mother's confinement, and is also liable to pay expenses in connection with her pregnancy as the court in its discretion may deem proper. The court shall admit in proceedings under this act a bill for funeral expenses, expenses of the mother's confinement, or expenses in connection with the mother's pregnancy, which bill constitutes prima facie evidence of the amount of those expenses, without third party foundation testimony. The court can order expenses to be apportioned based on the parent's ability to pay and other factors.
The following is a MI statute:
333.17015 Informed consent; definitions; duties of physician or
assistant; location; disclosure of information; website maintained and
operated by department; view of ultrasound; medical emergency
necessitating abortion; duties of department; physician's duty to inform
patient; validity of consent or certification form; right to abortion not
created; prohibition; portion of act found invalid; duties of local
health department; confidentiality.
Sec. 17015.
(1) Subject to subsection (10), a physician shall not perform an
abortion otherwise permitted by law without the patient's informed
written consent, given freely and without coercion.
(2) For purposes of this section:
(a) "Abortion" means the intentional use of an instrument, drug, or
other substance or device to terminate a woman's pregnancy for a purpose
other than to increase the probability of a live birth, to preserve the
life or health of the child after live birth, or to remove a dead fetus.
Abortion does not include the use or prescription of a drug or device
intended as a contraceptive.
(b) "Fetus" means an individual organism of the species homo sapiens in
utero.
(c) "Local health department representative" means a person, who meets
1 or more of the licensing requirements listed in subdivision (f) and who
is employed by, or under contract to provide services on behalf of, a
local health department.
(d) "Medical emergency" means that condition which, on the basis of the
physician's good faith clinical judgment, so complicates the medical
condition of a pregnant woman as to necessitate the immediate abortion of
her pregnancy to avert her death or for which a delay will create serious
risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily
function.
(e) "Medical service" means the provision of a treatment, procedure,
medication, examination, diagnostic test, assessment, or counseling,
including, but not limited to, a pregnancy test, ultrasound, pelvic
examination, or an abortion.
(f) "Qualified person assisting the physician" means another physician
or a physician's assistant licensed under this part or part 175, a fully
licensed or limited licensed psychologist licensed under part 182, a
professional counselor licensed under part 181, a registered professional
nurse or a licensed practical nurse licensed under part 172, or a social
worker licensed under part 185.
(g) "Probable gestational age of the fetus" means the gestational age
of the fetus at the time an abortion is planned to be performed.
(h) "Provide the patient with a physical copy" means confirming that
the patient accessed the internet website described in subsection (5) and
received a printed valid confirmation form from the website and including
that form in the patient's medical record or giving a patient a copy of a
required document by 1 or more of the following means:
(i) In person.
(ii) By registered mail, return receipt requested.
(iii) By parcel delivery service that requires the recipient to
provide a signature in order to receive delivery of a parcel.
(iv) By facsimile transmission.
(3) Subject to subsection (10), a physician or a qualified person
assisting the physician shall do all of the following not less than 24
hours before that physician performs an abortion upon a patient who is a
pregnant woman:
(a) Confirm that, according to the best medical judgment of a
physician, the patient is pregnant, and determine the probable gestational
age of the fetus.
(b) Orally describe, in language designed to be understood by the
patient, taking into account her age, level of maturity, and intellectual
capability, each of the following:
(i) The probable gestational age of the fetus she is carrying.
(ii) Information about what to do and whom to contact should medical
complications arise from the abortion.
(iii) Information about how to obtain pregnancy prevention information
through the department of community health.
(c) Provide the patient with a physical copy of the written summary
described in subsection (11)(b) that corresponds to the procedure the
patient will undergo and is provided by the department of community
health. If the procedure has not been recognized by the department, but
is otherwise allowed under Michigan law, and the department has not
provided a written summary for that procedure, the physician shall develop
and provide a written summary that describes the procedure, any known
risks or complications of the procedure, and risks associated with live
birth and meets the requirements of subsection (11)(b)(iii) through
(vii).
(d) Provide the patient with a physical copy of a medically accurate
depiction, illustration, or photograph and description of a fetus
supplied by the department of community health pursuant to
subsection (11)(a) at the gestational age nearest the probable gestational
age of the patient's fetus.
(e) Provide the patient with a physical copy of the prenatal care
and parenting information pamphlet distributed by the department
of community health under section 9161.
(4) The requirements of subsection (3) may be fulfilled by the
physician or a qualified person assisting the physician at a location
other than the health facility where the abortion is to be performed. The
requirement of subsection (3)(a) that a patient's pregnancy be confirmed
may be fulfilled by a local health department under subsection (18). The
requirements of subsection (3) cannot be fulfilled by the patient
accessing an internet website other than the internet website described
in subsection (5) that is maintained through the department.
(5) The requirements of subsection (3)(c) through (e) may be fulfilled
by a patient accessing the internet website maintained and operated
through the department and receiving a printed, valid confirmation form
from the website that the patient has reviewed the information required
in subsection (3)(c) through (e) at least 24 hours before an abortion
being performed on the patient. The website shall not require any
information be supplied by the patient. The department shall not track,
compile, or otherwise keep a record of information that would identify a
patient who accesses this website. The patient shall supply the valid
confirmation form to the physician or qualified person assisting the
physician to be included in the patient's medical record to comply with
this subsection.
(6) Subject to subsection (10), before obtaining the patient's
signature on the acknowledgment and consent form, a physician personally
and in the presence of the patient shall do all of the following:
(a) Provide the patient with the physician's name and inform the
patient of her right to withhold or withdraw her consent to the abortion
at any time before performance of the abortion.
(b) Orally describe, in language designed to be understood by the
patient, taking into account her age, level of maturity, and intellectual
capability, each of the following:
(i) The specific risk, if any, to the patient of the complications that
have been associated with the procedure the patient will undergo, based
on the patient's particular medical condition and history as determined
by the physician.
(ii) The specific risk of complications, if any, to the patient if she
chooses to continue the pregnancy based on the patient's particular
medical condition and history as determined by a physician.
(7) To protect a patient's privacy, the information set forth in
subsection (3) and subsection (6) shall not be disclosed to the patient
in the presence of another patient.
(8) If at any time prior to the performance of an abortion, a patient
undergoes an ultrasound examination, or a physician determines that
ultrasound imaging will be used during the course of a patient's
abortion, the physician or qualified person assisting the physician shall
provide the patient with the opportunity to view or decline to view an
active ultrasound image of the fetus, and offer to provide the patient
with a physical picture of the ultrasound image of the fetus prior to the
performance of the abortion. Before performing an abortion on a patient
who is a pregnant woman, a physician or a qualified person assisting the
physician shall do all of the following:
(a) Obtain the patient's signature on the acknowledgment and consent
form described in subsection (11)(c) confirming that she has received the
information required under subsection (3).
(b) Provide the patient with a physical copy of the signed
acknowledgment and consent form described in subsection (11)(c).
(c) Retain a copy of the signed acknowledgment and consent form
described in subsection (11)(c) and, if applicable, a copy of the
pregnancy certification form completed under subsection (18)(b), in the
patient's medical record.
(9) This subsection does not prohibit notifying the patient that
payment for medical services will be required or that collection of
payment in full for all medical services provided or planned may be
demanded after the 24-hour period described in this subsection has
expired. A physician or an agent of the physician shall not collect
payment, in whole or in part, for a medical service provided to or planned
for a patient before the expiration of 24 hours from the time the patient
has done either or both of the following, except in the case of a
physician or an agent of a physician receiving capitated payments or under
a salary arrangement for providing those medical services:
(a) Inquired about obtaining an abortion after her pregnancy is
confirmed and she has received from that physician or a qualified person
assisting the physician the information required under subsection (3)(c)
and (d).
(b) Scheduled an abortion to be performed by that physician.
(10) If the attending physician, utilizing his or her experience,
judgment, and professional competence, determines that a medical
emergency exists and necessitates performance of an abortion before the
requirements of subsections (1), (3), and (6) can be met, the physician
is exempt from the requirements of subsections (1), (3), and (6), may
perform the abortion, and shall maintain a written record identifying with
specificity the medical factors upon which the determination of the
medical emergency is based.
(11) The department of community health shall do each of the
following:
(a) Produce medically accurate depictions, illustrations, or
photographs of the development of a human fetus that indicate by scale the
actual size of the fetus at 2-week intervals from the fourth week through
the twenty-eighth week of gestation. Each depiction, illustration, or
photograph shall be accompanied by a printed description, in nontechnical
English, Arabic, and Spanish, of the probable anatomical and
physiological characteristics of the fetus at that particular state of
gestational development.
(b) Subject to subdivision (g), develop, draft, and print, in
nontechnical English, Arabic, and Spanish, written standardized
summaries, based upon the various medical procedures used to abort
pregnancies, that do each of the following:
(i) Describe, individually and on separate documents, those medical
procedures used to perform abortions in this state that are recognized by
the department.
(ii) Identify the physical complications that have been associated with
each procedure described in subparagraph (i) and with live birth, as
determined by the department. In identifying these complications, the
department shall consider the annual statistical report required under
section 2835(6), and shall consider studies concerning complications that
have been published in a peer review medical journal, with particular
attention paid to the design of the study, and shall consult with the
federal centers for disease control, the American college of
obstetricians and gynecologists, the Michigan state medical society, or
any other source that the department determines appropriate for the
purpose.
(iii) State that as the result of an abortion, some women may
experience depression, feelings of guilt, sleep disturbance, loss of
interest in work or sex, or anger, and that if these symptoms occur and
are intense or persistent, professional help is recommended.
(iv) State that not all of the complications listed in
subparagraph (ii) may pertain to that particular patient and refer the
patient to her physician for more personalized information.
(v) Identify services available through public agencies to assist
the patient during her pregnancy and after the birth of her child,
should she choose to give birth and maintain custody of her child.
(vi) Identify services available through public agencies to assist the
patient in placing her child in an adoptive or foster home, should she
choose to give birth but not maintain custody of her child.
(vii) Identify services available through public agencies to assist the
patient and provide counseling should she experience subsequent adverse
psychological effects from the abortion.
(c) Develop, draft, and print, in nontechnical English, Arabic,
and Spanish, an acknowledgment and consent form that includes only
the following language above a signature line for the patient:
"I, _______, hereby authorize Dr. __________________ ("the physician") and
any assistant designated by the physician to perform upon me the following
operation(s) or procedure(s):
______________________________________________________________
(Name of operation(s) or procedure(s))
______________________________________________________________
I understand that I am approximately ___ weeks pregnant. I consent to
an abortion procedure to terminate my pregnancy. I understand that I have
the right to withdraw my consent to the abortion procedure at any time
prior to performance of that procedure. I acknowledge that at least 24
hours before the scheduled abortion I have received a physical copy of
each of the following:
(a) A medically accurate depiction, illustration, or photograph of a
fetus at the probable gestational age of the fetus I am carrying.
(b) A written description of the medical procedure that will be
used to perform the abortion.
(c) A prenatal care and parenting information pamphlet. If any of the
above listed documents were transmitted by facsimile, I certify that the
documents were clear and legible. I acknowledge that the physician who
will perform the abortion has orally described all of the following to
me:
(i) The specific risk to me, if any, of the complications that
have been associated with the procedure I am scheduled to undergo.
(ii) The specific risk to me, if any, of the complications if I
choose to continue the pregnancy.
I acknowledge that I have received all of the following information:
(d) Information about what to do and whom to contact in the event
that complications arise from the abortion.
(e) Information pertaining to available pregnancy related services.
I have been given an opportunity to ask questions about the
operation(s) or procedure(s). I certify that I have not been required to
make any payments for an abortion or any medical service before the
expiration of 24 hours after I received the written materials listed in
paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) above, or 24 hours after the time and date
listed on the confirmation form if paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) were
viewed from the state of Michigan internet website.".
(d) Make available to physicians through the Michigan board of medicine
and the Michigan board of osteopathic medicine and surgery, and any
person upon request the copies of medically accurate depictions,
illustrations, or photographs described in subdivision (a), the
standardized written summaries described in subdivision (b), the
acknowledgment and consent form described in subdivision (c), the
prenatal care and parenting information pamphlet described in
section 9161, and the pregnancy certification form described in
subdivision (f).
(e) The department shall not develop written summaries for abortion
procedures under subdivision (b) that utilize medication that has not been
approved by the United States food and drug administration for use in
performing an abortion.
(f) Develop, draft, and print a certification form to be signed by a
local health department representative at the time and place a patient
has a pregnancy confirmed, as requested by the patient, verifying the
date and time the pregnancy is confirmed.
(g) Develop and maintain an internet website that allows a patient
considering an abortion to review the information required in
subsection (3)(c) through (e). After the patient reviews the required
information, the department shall assure that a confirmation form can be
printed by the patient from the internet website that will verify the time
and date the information was reviewed. A confirmation form printed under
this subdivision becomes invalid 14 days after the date and time printed on
the confirmation form.
(h) Include on the informed consent website developed under
subdivision (g) a list of health care providers, facilities, and clinics
that offer to perform ultrasounds free of charge. The list shall be
organized geographically and shall include the name, address, and telephone
number of each health care provider, facility, and clinic.
(12) A physician's duty to inform the patient under this section does
not require disclosure of information beyond what a reasonably
well-qualified physician licensed under this article would possess.
(13) A written consent form meeting the requirements set forth in this
section and signed by the patient is presumed valid. The presumption
created by this subsection may be rebutted by evidence that establishes,
by a preponderance of the evidence, that consent was obtained through
fraud, negligence, deception, misrepresentation, coercion, or duress.
(14) A completed certification form described in subsection (11)(f)
that is signed by a local health department representative is presumed
valid. The presumption created by this subsection may be rebutted by
evidence that establishes, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the
physician who relied upon the certification had actual knowledge that the
certificate contained a false or misleading statement or signature.
(15) This section does not create a right to abortion.
(16) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, a person
shall not perform an abortion that is prohibited by law.
(17) If any portion of this act or the application of this act to any
person or circumstances is found invalid by a court, that invalidity does
not affect the remaining portions or applications of the act that can be
given effect without the invalid portion or application, if those
remaining portions are not determined by the court to be inoperable.
(18) Upon a patient's request, each local health department shall:
(a) Provide a pregnancy test for that patient to confirm the pregnancy
as required under subsection (3)(a) and determine the probable
gestational stage of the fetus. The local health department need not
comply with this subdivision if the requirements of subsection (3)(a)
have already been met.
(b) If a pregnancy is confirmed, ensure that the patient is provided
with a completed pregnancy certification form described in
subsection (11)(f) at the time the information is provided.
(19) The identity and address of a patient who is provided information
or who consents to an abortion pursuant to this section is confidential
and is subject to disclosure only with the consent of the patient or by
judicial process.
(20) A local health department with a file containing the identity
and address of a patient described in subsection (19) who has been
assisted by the local health department under this section shall
do both of the following:
(a) Only release the identity and address of the patient to a physician
or qualified person assisting the physician in order to verify the
receipt of the information required under this section.
(b) Destroy the information containing the identity and address of
the patient within 30 days after assisting the patient under this
section.
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