Sex ed Rights

• Missouri state law does not require schools teach sex ed, though health education and HIV/AIDS education is required. Local school boards decide whether or not to teach sex ed.
• If a school chooses to provide sex ed, Missouri requires that all instruction must be medically and factually accurate and “present abstinence from sexual activity as the preferred choice of behavior in relation to all sexual activity for unmarried pupils.”
• Teaching about contraceptives, such as condoms or the Pill, is required but within a curriculum that promotes abstinence.
• School districts and charter schools that offer sex ed must make all sex ed curriculum materials publicly available.
• Parents have the right to remove their child from sex ed classes. This is referred to as an “opt-out” policy.
• If you want your school to offer comprehensive sex ed classes, be sure to learn more at SIECUS about your state. You can make a difference!

HIV/AIDS and Other STDs Education

• Missouri state law specifically requires HIV/AIDS education.
• Students are to be given medical information regarding HIV/AIDS, human papillomavirus [HPV], hepatitis and other STDs.
• It must be medically accurate and age appropriate.

Age of Minority

17

• In Missouri, as with most states, you are considered a minor (someone who is not an adult) if you are under 18 years old.
• This is a legal status that lawmakers created for your protection. We want you to be informed because being a “minor” affects your right to information and services. To learn more, read on!

Age of Consent

17

• Legally, people can’t consent (or agree) to sex (with someone who is considered an adult) until they reach a specific age. This is called the “age of consent.” Consent laws are meant to protect minors from being manipulated or forced into sex with older people.
• In Missouri, if both sexual partners are at least 14, it is legal for them to have sex. But if one person is 21 or over, the other person must be at least 17 to consent to sex.
• Missouri statutory rape law is violated when a person has consensual sexual intercourse with an individual under age 17. Defenses do exist under certain circumstances when the offender made a mistake identifying the victim’s age.
• There is no close-in-age exemption either. Similarly, no protections are reserved for sexual relations in which one participant is a 16-year-old and the second is a 17- or 18-year-old.

LGBTQ Rights

• Public schools in Missouri have no Safe Schools Law in effect, which is a statewide anti-harassment and/or non-discrimination law that includes the categories of sexual orientation and gender identity.
• There are no statewide anti-bullying laws to protect students based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
• There are statewide non-discrimination laws, but they do not offer protection based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
• State hate crimes laws include protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
• If discrimination, harassment or a hate crime happens to you or someone you know, please call the Gay and Lesbian National Hotline at 1-888-THE-GLNH (843-4564) for help and support, or check out Lambda Legal. No one deserves discrimination or harassment!

HIV / AIDS Testing

• You don’t need permission from your parent or guardian to get tested for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV in Missouri. However, a physician may (but is not legally required to) inform your parents/guardian.
• If you’re a minor, it’s important for you to ask questions about confidentiality when you call to make your appointment. Specifically ask, “If I make an appointment and receive any kind of services at your clinic, will you tell my parents or anyone else?” This applies to all services, including testing for pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.
• Find an HIV testing site in your area here or call the Centers for Disease Control’s 24-hour National AIDS Hotline at 1-800-CDC-INFO (232-4636).

Condoms

• People of any age, including teens, can buy condoms from a drugstore, pharmacy, grocery store or even online. A 12-pack of condoms costs about $9-12. Internal or female condoms are about $2-4 per condom. Many grocery stores and pharmacies don’t carry internal/female condoms, but they can be found online, at Planned Parenthood, at family planning clinics and by prescription.
• You can get condoms for free or at a reduced cost from health clinics (like Planned Parenthood), HIV testing centers and local health departments. Call 1-800-230-PLAN (7526) for the nearest Planned Parenthood.
• Always check the expiration date on condoms to make sure that the condoms haven’t expired yet. For information on how to use a condom correctly, check out this FAQ. Learn all about internal/female condoms on Sexetc.org.
• It is not explicitly stated in any statute whether or not minors have access to Prep/PEP without parental consent. It is best to contact your doctor or local clinic for more information in your county.

Birth Control

• In Missouri, minors (those under 18) who are married can get a prescription for birth control without a parent’s permission. All other minors must get a parent or guardian’s permission to receive a prescription.
• Clinics called “Title X clinics”—pronounced “title ten”—provide confidential sexual and reproductive health care to both teens and adults. Title X clinics offer many services, including prescriptions for the Pill, pregnancy option counseling, and testing for pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases and infections, including HIV.
• If you go to a Title X clinic, your appointment will be confidential, including your billing and your records.
• These clinics charge on what’s called a sliding-scale fee basis, which means they help you pay what you can afford, and you can pay in cash. If you pay for your visit by using your family’s health insurance, then your parents are likely to see the bill when it arrives in the mail.
• Call 1-800-230-PLAN (7526) for the nearest Planned Parenthood.
• Or use this tool to find a Title X clinic near you:
• When you make an appointment for health care, ask about confidentiality rules. When you call, ask:
  • Can I get services at your office without my parents’ permission?
  • Can my parent/s have access to my records?
  • Will my parent/s see the bill?
• It is your right to get sexual and reproductive health care where you feel safe and comfortable, so don’t worry about asking these questions.

Abortion Access

This section is currently being updated and may not have the most current information (as you know, these laws have been shifting quickly). We are working to refresh it ASAP! For now, you can see updated abortion policies here.

• Abortion is illegal in Missouri with very limited exceptions.
• If you are under 18 years old and want an abortion, one parent must give permission before you can get one. This is called “parental consent.” If that’s not possible, you are able to ask a judge for permission, or get special permission if it’s an emergency. This is called “judicial bypass.”
• In Missouri, you are required to have an in-person counseling session before you can get an abortion.
• There is also a 72-hour mandatory waiting period in Missouri before someone can get an abortion, so you would have to receive counseling, wait 72 hours, and then have the procedure.
• Missouri does not provide Medicaid (health care) coverage for medically necessary abortions. Medicaid can be used to pay for abortions only in cases of life endangerment, rape or incest.
• If you need help paying for an abortion, call the National Abortion Federation Hotline at 1-800-772-9100, Monday–Friday, 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Saturday–Sunday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. (Eastern Daylight Time). The hotline can tell you where and how to get financial help for an abortion in the U.S.

Adoption

• To learn about adoption, visit the National Council for Adoption.

Pregnancy

You do not need a prescription from a doctor or health care provider to get a pregnancy test. You can purchase a pregnancy test from a pharmacy, grocery store or online. They cost between $10 and $18. You can also take a pregnancy test at a doctor’s office or clinic, like Planned Parenthood. Many clinics offer free or reduced-cost pregnancy tests.

• Visits to clinics known as Title X (ten) clinics are confidential for teens and adults.
• Use this tool to find a Title X clinic near you:
• Or call 1-800-230-PLAN (7526) for the nearest Planned Parenthood.
• If you pay for your visit by using your family’s health insurance, your parents are likely to see the details of your visit when the bill arrives. Almost all clinics provide free or reduced-cost services to teens to make it easier to afford services.
• Beware of so-called crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs). These centers claim to give you complete and accurate information about your pregnancy options when they actually want to discourage you from getting an abortion. They offer misleading and medically inaccurate information about abortion. Common names of these centers are “Crisis Pregnancy Center,” “Pregnancy Aid,” “Birth Right,” “Open Door” or “Pregnancy Counseling Center.” They are often set up near clinics and Planned Parenthood locations in order to confuse patients to accidentally enter the CPC instead.

Emergency Contraception

• There are several types—or “brands”—of emergency contraception, sometimes called EC or the morning after pill.
• People of any age can buy the brand Plan B One Step and its generic versions at a local pharmacy over the counter, which means you can buy EC without a prescription.
• EC sells for between $35 and $60. Prices vary depending on the brand and the pharmacy.
• To find an EC provider, call the Emergency Contraception Hotline at 1-888-NOT-2-LATE (668-2528). They can help you find access to EC if you’re having any trouble at all.
• Missouri does not require emergency rooms to provide EC or information on EC to rape survivors.
• If you have been raped and you want EC, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). Open 24 hours, the hotline will connect you to EC providers near you. For other helpful information, check out the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network’s Web site.

Sexting

• There are no laws in Missouri specifically regarding sexting. However, sexting falls under state child pornography regulations, which state that pictures of a person under 18 engaged in sexual behaviors is a crime.
• As of 2015, schools in Missouri that teach sex ed must include instruction on “the dangers of sexual predators, including online predators when using electronic communication methods” and “the consequences, both personal and legal, of inappropriate text messaging.”