Nearly half of US states explicitly permit minors to access contraception without parental involvement, allowing minors to provide their own consent for this care. In several of these states, minors are allowed to provide consent to contraception only under certain circumstances, including: when there is a health risk to the minor; if the minor is or has ever been married; if the minor is already a parent; or if the minor is currently pregnant or has ever been pregnant. Some of these states also allow providers to notify minors’ parents that they have accessed contraception.
Other states do not have laws or policies that explicitly prohibit or allow minors to consent to contraception. In those states, minors’ access to contraceptive services may be governed by laws and policies that control minors’ access to health care generally. Minors in those states may be able to consent to health care services generally, including contraceptive services, based on an individual provider’s assessment of their maturity, or under specific circumstances, like marriage. Additionally, minors who are emancipated are able to consent to their own health care. General health care consent laws and policies are reflected in the table below only if the state lacks laws or policies specific to minors’ contraception access. Additionally, minors in most states can consent to care at clinics funded by Title X, regardless of parental consent.
Two states prohibit minors from accessing contraception without parental consent. One of those states, Texas, extends this prohibition to Title X clinics as well.