Legislators are justifiably concerned over a hospital’s unwillingness to inform a 12-year-old rape victim of her option to use emergency contraceptives, a step that could have prevented her pregnancy and saved her from having to face the emotional decision to abort.
That 12-year-old is now in her second trimester.
Although the majority of hospitals in Massachusetts (four out of five) inform rape patients of this option, just three years ago that ratio was five out of six. The chances are too good that a victim might choose the wrong the hospital.
Hospitals should be required to provide rape patients with the option of emergency contraception, as most victims of rape would prefer the pill instead of abortion further down the road.
For rape patients, the decision to take the emergency pill is less traumatic before they are aware of their pregnancy. Even though victims are often shaken after a rape, the decision to avoid pregnancy will usually be easy.
Regardless of views on abortion, policy-makers should recognize the benefit of requiring hospitals to provide emergency contraceptive information.
Despite what critics say, the proposal is unlikely to increase occurrences of date rape—for someone capable of such a crime, the consequences of pregnancy hold little weight. Likewise, people are unlikely to use emergency room contraception as a form of birth control after unprotected sex. And what little abuse might occur will be easily outweighed by the benefit to rape victims.
Victims of rape should also know the period of discomfort that comes moments after emergency contraceptive is ingested, but this short period does not even approach the emotional and physical distress involved in the decision to abort a pregnancy.
Legislators should not ignore the need to prevent rape, but informing victims of all their options gives them a better chance for the best treatment. Hospitals already routinely perform tests for sexually transmitted diseases, and providing rape victims with the option for emergency contraception is no less necessary.
The emergency room is the best place to administer the pill to rape victims—emergency contraception becomes less effective the longer victims wait, and the setting is the best way to minimize embarrassment for victims.
The rest of the nation should adopt the legislation now being considered in Massachusetts, providing rape victims all over America with the same option.
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