FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 6th, 2025
Contact: Ashley Vaughan
[email protected]

PARENTS’ MEDICAL BILL OF RIGHTS PASSES IN NC HOUSE

RALEIGH, NC — Today, the North Carolina House of Representatives passed HB 519, the Parents’ Medical Bill of Rights, on a 68-41 vote to restore the right of parents to make medical decisions for their children for serious health conditions including STDs, substance abuse, and mental health problems. The bill now moves to the North Carolina Senate for consideration.

North Carolina law currently allows minors to consent to prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of STDs, substance abuse, and “emotional disturbance.” Because of this, parents are being left out of important medical decisions that may have life-changing ramifications, and the burden of managing those conditions is being left to children alone. Furthermore, parents are being excluded from deeply personal and value-laden situations that they have a right to speak into as the ones responsible for the upbringing of the child. HB 519 repeals the statute allowing minors to consent to these conditions, and restores parents to their rightful authority to direct the upbringing of their children – including medical decisions.

“Parents need to be involved when children face serious medical conditions.” said Tami Fitzgerald, Executive Director of the NC Values Coalition. “It is dangerous and irresponsible to allow children to make medical decisions in secret, especially when those decisions involve mental health, drug use, or sexual activity. We are grateful to the NC House for passing the Parents Medical Bill of Rights because it puts parents back where they belong—directing their child’s care and upbringing. The NC Supreme Court recently affirmed parents’ rights in a case named Happel v. Guilford County Board of Education, and HB 519 repeals an old, unconstitutional statute which violates those rights.”

What the Parents Medical Bill of Rights/Minors Health Protection Act Does:

  • Restores parental consent for medical treatment related to sexually transmitted diseases, substance abuse, and “emotional disturbance.

  • Ensures parental access to their child’s medical records, ending the secrecy that currently prevents parents from knowing what treatments their child is receiving.

In March, the NC Supreme Court issued a landmark decision in Happel v. Guilford County Board of Education, affirming that parents’ rights are a fundamental Constitutional right. Chief Justice Paul Newby wrote in the majority opinion that parents have the right to direct the upbringing of their own children – including giving consent to and making medical decisions for their children.

The bill is sponsored by Reps. Jennifer Balkcom, Donnie Loftis, Brian Biggs, and Larry Potts.

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