• Twenty-seven states and the District of Columbia have laws or policies that specifically authorize a pregnant minor to obtain prenatal care and delivery services without parental consent or notification. • All 50 states and the District of Columbia specifically allow minors to consent to testing and treatment for STDs, including HIV.
How many states allow minors to give their own consent?
State Minor Consent Laws: A Summary 3rd Edition, summarizes the laws in each of the 50 U.S. states and the District of. Columbia that allow minors to give their own consent for health care.
Do minors need parental consent for outpatient mental health services?
• Laws in 20 states and the District of Columbia give minors the explicit authority to consent to outpatient mental health services. No state explicitly requires parental consent or notification for any of these services.
Do minors have the right to consent to medical treatment?
While the law has traditionally considered minors to be incompetent to give consent for medical treatment, most states now have statutes that give minors the right to consent to treatment in specific situations.2Examples of these are as follows: Court-ordered emancipation.
What states allow parents to consent to medical care for children?
30 states and the District of Columbia allow all parents, regardless of age, to consent to medical care for their child. 20 states have no explicit policy or relevant case law.
What is the law that allows a minor to give consent to HIV testing?
Laws that explicitly allow a minor to give informed consent to HIV testing, treatment, and/or prophylaxis, including pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), or. Laws that allow a minor to give informed consent to general health care, services, or procedures. As of 2020, all jurisdictions have laws that explicitly allow a minor of a particular age ...
Can a minor give consent to HIV treatment?
Jurisdictions have different types of laws, and the age at which the minor has the legal right to provide informed consent to receive STD or HIV services varies by jurisdiction: Laws that explicitly allow a minor to give informed consent to receive STD diagnosis and treatment, and/or prevention. Laws that explicitly allow a minor ...
Who reviews state laws pertaining to minors' authority to consent to medical care?
The Alan Guttmacher Institute has periodically reviewed state laws pertaining to minors' authority to consent to medical care and to make other important decisions without their parents' knowledge or permission. This year its review was expanded to also take into account state court decisions and attorneys general opinions ...
Which states prohibit the use of state funds to provide contraceptive services to minors without parental consent?
However, two states—Texas and Utah —prohibit the use of state funds to provide contraceptive services to minors without parental consent. And one state—Iowa—requires that parents be notified if their child receives a positive HIV test. In addition to laws and policies that permit minors to consent to specific services, ...
What are the rights of minors?
Many states specifically authorize minors to consent to contraceptive services, testing and treatment for HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases, prenatal care and delivery services, treatment for alcohol and drug abuse, and outpatient mental health care. With the exception of abortion, lawmakers have generally resisted attempts ...
How many states have contraceptive laws?
The review, conducted in July 2000, found the following: • Twenty-five states and the District of Columbia have laws or policies that explicitly give minors the authority to consent to contraceptive services. • Twenty-seven states and the District of Columbia have laws or policies that specifically authorize a pregnant minor to obtain prenatal care ...
How many states have medical consent laws?
In addition to laws and policies that permit minors to consent to specific services, 21 states have statutes that authorize minors to consent to general medical and surgical care, at least under some circumstances, such as having a child, being pregnant or having reached a certain age. In Alabama, for example, minors aged 14 ...
What is Title X Family Planning?
At the federal level, the focal point of debate over minors' access to confidential services has been the Title X family planning program. Since its inception in 1970, services supported by Title X have been available to anyone who needs them without regard to age. As a result, Title X-supported clinics provide contraceptive services ...
Why is it important for adolescents to have access to confidential services?
Most youth-serving agencies and medical professionals believe that access to confidential services is essential, because many sexually active adolescents will not seek care if they have to inform a parent or have their parent's consent. "Minors' consent laws are extremely important," argues Abigail English, director of the Center for Adolescent Health and the Law. "They encourage young people to seek the health care services they need and enable them to talk candidly with their providers."
What is the legal age to consent to a range of sensitive health care services?
The ability of people younger than 18 (generally, the legal definition of a minor) to consent to a range of sensitive health care services—including sexual and reproductive health care, mental health services, and alcohol and drug abuse treatment—has expanded dramatically over the past several decades. This trend reflects the recognition that, while involving parents or guardians in young people’s health care decisions is desirable, many young people will not avail themselves of important services if they are forced to involve their parents. With regard to sexual and reproductive health care, many states explicitly permit all or some people younger than 18 to obtain contraceptive, prenatal and STI services without parental involvement. Moreover, nearly every state permits parents younger than 18 to make important decisions regarding their children. In sharp contrast, a majority of states require parental involvement before a legal minor can obtain an abortion.
How many states require parental consent for abortion?
21 states require that at least one parent provide consent before a patient younger than 18 can obtain an abortion, while 10 states require prior notification of at least one parent. 6 states require both notification of and consent from a parent before a minor’s abortion.
What age can you consent to a child?
For laws related to HIV and other STI services, pregnancy care, adoption or medical care for a child, state consent laws apply to all individuals aged 12 through 17. In some cases, however, states allow only certain groups of young people—such as those who are married, pregnant or already parents—to consent.
How old do you have to be to get STI?
With regard to sexual and reproductive health care, many states explicitly permit all or some people younger than 18 to obtain contraceptive, prenatal and STI services without parental involvement. Moreover, nearly every state permits parents younger than 18 to make important decisions regarding their children.
How many states allow prenatal care?
Prenatal care: 33 states and DC explicitly allow all individuals younger than 18 to consent to prenatal care. 14 of these states allow, but do not require, a physician to inform parents that their child is seeking or receiving prenatal care when the doctor deems it in the young person’s best interest to do so.
How many states require legal counsel?
5 states require the involvement of legal counsel or a guardian ad litem. 12 states have no explicit policy or relevant case law. 30 states and the District of Columbia allow all parents, regardless of age, to consent to medical care for their child. 20 states have no explicit policy or relevant case law. 2 states and the District of Columbia ...
How many states have no explicit policy or relevant case law?
13 states have no explicit policy or relevant case law. Adoption: 28 states and the District of Columbia allow all parents, regardless of age, to choose to place their child for adoption. 5 states require the parent of a minor consenting to an adoption to be notified before the adoption takes place or to consent to the adoption.
Abstract
In a recent publication, the lack of consensus among U.S. laws regarding the age at which minors may consent to confidential treatment for abuse of illegal substances was highlighted. This article reports the results of an investigation of the information used by legislators to determine the age at which minors may consent to treatment.
Methods
The statutes, codes, or regulations of each American state and the District of Columbia (D.C.) were searched on the World Wide Web for subjects such as substance abuse services, treatment for use of illegal drugs, alcohol or drug abuse, treatment of substance abusers, capacity of minors to consent to treatment, consent by minors to treatment or services, and drug-dependent minors.
Results
The results of the investigation are displayed in Table 1, arranged alphabetically according to state.
Discussion
U.S. state lawmakers were asked to recall the information used to determine the age at which minors in their states are capable of consenting to confidential treatment for abuse of illegal substances.
Acknowledgments
The author is indebted to Ms. Ashling Swift for her unwavering determination to collect the data for this project.
The States and Medical Care For Minors
- States have traditionally recognized the right of parents to make health care decisions on their children's behalf, on the presumption that before reaching the age of majority (18 in all but four states), young people lack the experience and judgment to make fully informed decisions. There have long been exceptions to this rule, however, such as me...
The States and Abortion
- The one notable exception to the expansion of minors' decision-making authority on health care matters is abortion. Only two states—Connecticut and Maine—and the District of Columbia have laws that affirm a minor's ability to obtain an abortion on her own. By contrast, 31 states have laws in effect that require the involvement of at least one parent in their daughter's abortion deci…
Ensuring Minors' Access to Health Care
- Most youth-serving agencies and medical professionals believe that access to confidential services is essential, because many sexually active adolescents will not seek care if they have to inform a parent or have their parent's consent. "Minors' consent laws are extremely important," argues Abigail English, director of the Center for Adolescent Health and the Law. "They encourag…