The abortion rate among teenagers declines faster in states with strong parental consent laws. Statistics show that between 1990-1999, states without parental notification or consent laws saw their teenage abortion rate decline by an average of 18%.

During that same time period, state that require at least one parent to be notified before a teenager can obtain an abortion experienced a drop of more than 30%.

Even more impressive, in states which require the actual consent of at least one parent, the teenage abortion rate ;lummeted by 55%.

These figures appear to be part of a continuing national trend. During the 90s, the total number of abortions performed in America dropped 20 percent.

In addition to parental involvement laws, other factors being credited for this decline are a shrinking pool of abortion providers, less state funding of abortions, fewer teen pregnancies, the porliferation of abstinence-until-marriage education programs, and the public's increasingly negative attitude toward abortion. [CDC figures, study by World Magazine; Life Dynamics News, 2/03]