Government, Parents and Birth: Who is in Charge?

MSNBC.com [1] ran a recent article about certain states mandating certain procedures for infants, regardless of parental consent. While the exact situation doesn't apply to most of us, it does raise some very important questions about the role of government, who is the primary provider for children, and the cost of liberty. Two quotes really stuck out in the article to us. The first is from a hospital defending the laws that require blood tests of newborns, even if parents object:

“Some parents may not comprehend the risks they are taking with their children’s health,” said Bruce Rieker of the Nebraska Hospital Association.

The second quote is from one of the parents who challenged the law in court:

Louise Spiering said: “There was a very steep cost in terms of the intrusion on our private lives.”

These sort of stories hit home not only because we have children and believe Yahweh has put them under our care (not Big Brother's), but also because we have heard well intended people speak passionately about the necessity that everyone receive certain medical treatments regardless of the person's individual will. For example we have read material from people who passionately believe every pre-teen girl should receive the HPV vaccine regardless of lifestyle and parental consent. I could write quite a bit on this topic, but I will let others comment for now :)