Judicial Bypass for Minors Seeking Abortions in Arkansas Versus Other States.

OBJECTIVES: To describe demographic characteristics and abortion timing of minors in Arkansas who obtained an abortion through a judicial bypass, and to contrast the frequency of judicial bypass in other states in the United States.

METHODS: We used individual-level data on all abortions to minors (n = 2624) performed in Arkansas from 2005 to 2014 and aggregated data from 10 additional states on abortions obtained through a judicial bypass. We characterized correlates of the judicial bypass and its association with the timing of abortion.

RESULTS: Minors in Arkansas who used the courts were more likely to be 17 years of age, nonresidents of Arkansas, Hispanic, and with fewer previous pregnancies than their younger, resident, non-Hispanic White, and multigravida counterparts; 7.7% of abortions to minors were obtained via a bypass in 11 states, but only 2% if Texas and Arkansas are excluded.

CONCLUSIONS: The demographics of minors who obtain an abortion through a judicial bypass differ significantly from those who have parental consent, and there is widespread variation in the proportion of bypass cases across states.