Several states explicitly allow people under age 18 to receive prescription birth control without parental involvement. Some states reserve the right to notify a parent or legal guardian with few exceptions, while others have unclear legal status.
“Depending on the state you live in, you may or may not need parental consent to access birth control,” said Laura Purdy, MD, OB-GYN, chief medical officer at Wisp, a telehealth platform focused on sexual and reproductive health.
“If you need to access birth control without parental consent or knowledge, it’s important to check your state’s laws surrounding minors’ access to reproductive healthcare,” she explained.
This article is specifically about prescription birth control. There are certain birth control methods that anyone of any age can purchase without a prescription.
External or “male” condoms are available at most drugstores. You may also be able to find spermicide in stores. Some stores may also carry the vaginal sponge or film.
You can buy these with cash if you’re concerned about creating a paper trail. Alternatively, many walk-in clinics, health departments, and university health centers offer free condoms.
How to use this guideThis information was taken from the Guttmacher Institute. We recommend searching this article for your state.
To do this, find the Control key (the Command key on a Mac) and press it down. While holding down the Control key, also press the F key. Enter your state in the search field that pops up on the upper right of the screen.
Some states do not require parental consent but reserve the right to notify a parent or guardian. Some states waive parental consent and notification in limited circumstances.
Locating all mentions of your state will help you familiarize yourself with any and all applicable restrictions.
The following state allows people over age 13 to receive contraceptive services without informing or involving a parent, legal guardian, or other caregiver:
- Alabama
The following state allows people over age 15 to receive contraceptive services without informing or involving a parent, legal guardian, or other caregiver:
- South Carolina
Anyone under age 18 can receive contraceptive services without informing or involving a parent, legal guardian, or other caregiver in the following states:
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- District of Columbia (Washington, D.C.)
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Iowa
- Massachusetts
- Nevada
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- Pennsylvania
- Tennessee
- Virginia
- Washington
- Wyoming
The following states require people under age 12 to have the written permission of one parent or legal guardian to receive contraceptive services:
- Delaware
- Illinois
The following states require people under age 14 to have the written permission of one parent or legal guardian to receive contraceptive services:
- Alabama
- Hawaii
The following state requires people under age 16 to have the written permission of one parent or legal guardian to receive contraceptive services:
- South Carolina
The following state allows people over age 11 to receive contraceptive services, but healthcare professionals may choose to notify your parent(s) or legal guardian(s):
- Delaware
The following state allows people over age 13 to receive contraceptive services, but healthcare professionals may choose to notify your parent(s) or legal guardian(s):
- Hawaii
Although anyone under age 18 can receive contraceptive services in these states, healthcare professionals may choose to notify your parent(s) or legal guardian(s):
- Kentucky
- Maine
- Maryland
- Minnesota
- Montana
- Oregon
The following state allows people under age 14 to receive contraceptive services if they’re married, a parent, have a history of pregnancy, or graduated high school:
- Alabama
The following state allows people under age 16 to receive contraceptive services if they’re married or “demonstrate maturity”:
- South Carolina
The following state allows people under age 18 to receive contraceptive services if their health is at risk, they’re married, are a parent, have a history of pregnancy, or a specified professional recommends it:
- Illinois
The following state allows people under age 18 to receive contraceptive services if their health is at risk, they’re married, are a parent, or have a history of pregnancy:
- Florida
The following state allows people under age 18 to receive contraceptive services if they’re married, a parent, or a specified professional recommends it:
- Mississippi
The following state allows people under age 18 to receive contraceptive services if they’re married or have a history of pregnancy, but healthcare professionals may choose to notify the parent(s) or legal guardian(s):
- Oklahoma
The following state allows people under age 18 to receive contraceptive services if they’re married or have a history of pregnancy:
- New Jersey
The following state allows people under age 18 to receive contraceptive services if they’re married or “demonstrate maturity”:
- West Virginia
The following states allow people under age 18 to receive contraceptive services if they’re married:
- Connecticut
- Indiana
- Louisiana
- Michigan
- Missouri
- Nebraska
- South Dakota
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
The following states allow people under age 18 to receive contraceptive services if they “demonstrate maturity”:
- Kansas
- New Hampshire
The following states do not have laws around whether people under age 18 can receive contraceptive services with or without informing or involving a parent, legal guardian, or other caregiver:
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Rhode Island
- Wisconsin
But that doesn’t mean you’re without options.
Title X clinics provide confidential, comprehensive family planning and preventive health services to anyone who needs them, regardless of age or ability to pay. Find a Title X clinic near you by searching this database.
You can also access confidential contraceptive services at Planned Parenthood. Find a Planned Parenthood near you by searching this database.
If there isn’t a Planned Parenthood or Title X clinic near you, call your local health department or medical practice and ask questions, suggests family nurse practitioner Adrienne Ton, director of clinical operations at TBD Health.
“You can ask a clinic what their policies are for minors and contraception, as individual clinics usually have their own policies that they follow,” she said.
“Talk to your clinician and the front desk about any concerns you have around privacy or confidentiality,” said Ton.
Don’t be afraid to specify why confidentiality is so important here. For example, if your safety is a potential risk, you can name that.
“You should also ask to keep the documentation about contraceptive services confidential from parents and ensure that parents don’t have full access to the patient portal,” Ton said.
Be sure to double-check the phone number(s) on file at the clinic and your pharmacy of choice.
“That way, you are getting contacted directly when your prescription is ready, not your parents,” said Ton.
No doubt, doctor-provided contraceptive services are difficult to navigate, said Purdy. Thankfully, there are many resources available to help.
To find state-specific information, Purdy recommends checking out:
Take note of the article’s publishing date or last updated date to ensure the information is current.
With that in mind, the information in this article was accurate and up to date at the time of publication, but the information may have changed since.
It’s worth doing a quick Google search to double-check the current laws in your state. For example, you might search “[your state] + [your age] + [date] birth control without parental consent.”
Tess Catlett is a sex and relationships editor at Healthline, covering all things sticky, scary, and sweet. Find her unpacking her inherited trauma and crying over Harry Styles on Twitter.