OPTION: Parenting
You decide to carry the pregnancy to term and raise the child
Legal Rights
- Under Illinois law pregnant teens are able to consent (give permission) to medical care throughout their pregnancy.
- You can make medical decisions for yourself and for your baby once the baby is born.
- While you can choose to go to a school specifically designed for pregnant teens, you have the right to continue to stay at your current school if you wish.
- Once the baby is born, you have full parental rights for your child.
No one can force you to have an abortion or place the baby up for adoption.
Support
Becoming a parent and raising a child as a teen requires a lot of support and can be very expensive. If you’re thinking about parenting, there are a number of state programs and free and low cost resources available to you:
- Medical: Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program.
- Food: Women, Infants and Children (WIC) and Supplemental Food Assistance Program (SNAP).
- Financial: Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF).
- Child Support: A minor parent who is raising the child may be able to get child support from the other parent by filing a child support application with the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services.
- Education: You can stay in your own school or enroll in a school designed just for pregnant students – look online to see if there is one near you. For more information on the rights of students who are pregnant or parenting, visit www.nwlc.org/resource/pregnant-and-parenting-students-rights.
- Safe Haven Law: If you are the parent of a baby who is 30 days old or younger and you don’t think you can care for it anymore, you can place the unharmed baby in the care of a staff member at any hospital, emergency medical facility, staffed fire station, or police station and walk away with no questions asked. Visit saveabandonedbabies.org.
Additional Information
Visit dhs.state.il.us for information on:
- How to access the support listed above.
- Pregnancy and parenting resources.
