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Sex in the States

Oklahoma

Did you know that your state animal is the buffalo? You probably did, but we sure didn’t! So we put together a list of facts about laws in your state that you may not know about.  Click on a question below to see how your state stacks up on sexuality issues for teens. And don’t forget to find out how you can Take Action on these issues!

 

What is the age of a minor in Oklahoma?

You are considered a minor (someone who is not an adult) if you are 17 years or younger. 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!

Keep in mind that these laws may be different for you if you are legally considered an emancipated minor, pregnant minor, minor living apart, or married minor. You can learn more by talking to a legal representative at various agencies.


What are my rights to abortion in Oklahoma?

  • If you are under or over 18 years old and want an abortion, you are required to ask your parent/s or guardian for permission, and tell them.  Ask your abortion provider for the latest legal info, or call the National Abortion Federation Hotline at 1-800-772-9100, Monday–Friday, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturday–Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time).   
  • There is a 24-hour mandatory waiting period in your state before a teen can get an abortion.
  • Your state provides Medicaid coverage for medically necessary 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, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Saturday–Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time) or click here. The hotline can tell you where and how to get financial help for an abortion in the U.S.

What are my rights to birth control in Oklahoma?

If you go to a Title X clinic, your appointment will be completely confidential, including your billing and your records.
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Title X clinics provide sexual and reproductive health care to the public (girls, boys, teens and adults). Title X clinics offer many services, including prescriptions for the Pill, pregnancy option counseling, and testing for pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV. 
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These clinics charge on a sliding-scale fee basis, 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.

To make sure your visit is confidential, tell the clinic staff how to contact you about test results and future appointments without your parents knowing.

To find a Title X clinic near you, click here or call 1-800-230-PLAN (7526) for the nearest Planned Parenthood Health Center.    

If you go to a private doctor or physician, then you need to ask them about their confidentiality rules when you are making the appointment. Ask them when you call:
  • 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 if these questions are important to you. 

How can I get a pregnancy test in Oklahoma?

  • 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-fee pregnancy tests.
  • All visits to Title X clinics are confidential for teens and adults. They will not share your records with your parents or your family doctor (or anyone else) without your permission.
  • To find a Title X clinic, click here or call 1-800-230-PLAN (7526) for the nearest Planned Parenthood Health Center.
  • 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. Almost all clinics provide free or sliding-scale fee services to teens in order to make it easier for teens to pay with cash.
  • To make sure your visit is confidential, tell the clinic staff how to contact you about test results and future appointments without your parents knowing.
  • Beware of crisis pregnancy centers. These centers claim to give you complete and accurate information about your pregnancy options when, in reality, their agenda is 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.”

Can I buy condoms in Oklahoma? How?

  • Yes, you can buy condoms, and you do not have to be a certain age to buy them. Teens of any age can buy condoms from a drugstore, pharmacy, grocery store, or even online. They are relatively inexpensive. A pack of twelve condoms costs about $12. 
  • 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 Health Center.)
  • If you buy condoms, check the expiration date on the box or the package to make sure that the condoms haven’t expired yet. For info on how to use a condom correctly, click here. To find out how to use or buy female condoms, click here.

Can I get emergency contraception (aka, "EC" or the "morning-after pill") in Oklahoma?

  • In March 2009 a federal court issued an order to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, requiring that the manufacturer of the EC brand Plan B make it available for over-the-counter sale to people 17 and older. In August 2009, Next Choice (a generic version of Plan B) was also approved to be sold over-the-counter to people 17 and older. So if you are 17 or older you can go directly to a pharmacy and ask to buy emergency contraception. Be sure to bring ID with you.
  • Girls under 17 can get emergency contraception (EC), but the only way to get it is with a prescription from a health care provider. To find a provider or clinic near you, call the Emergency Contraception Hotline at 1-888-NOT-2-LATE (668-2528) or click here.
  • If you go to an emergency room after a sexual assault, that emergency room is not required by law to give you information about EC or to give EC to you if you ask for it.
  • 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 info, check out the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network’s Web site.

What are my rights to HIV and STD testing, including confidentiality in Oklahoma?

  • You don’t need permission from your parent or guardian to get tested for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and HIV in your state. But if you test positive for HIV or another STD and receive treatment, the health care provider may legally discuss this with your parents.
  • If you are a minor, it is very 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 diseases, including HIV.
  • To make sure your visit is confidential, tell the clinic staff how to contact you about test results and future appointments without your parents knowing.
  • Your state offers both anonymous and confidential HIV testing. This means that if you get tested for HIV, you can choose to either have your results confidentially reported to the health department using your name, or have your results anonymously reported to the health department using a number code, not your name. 
  • To find an HIV testing site in your area, call the Centers for Disease Control’s 24-hour National AIDS Hotline at 1-800-342-AIDS (2437) or click here.

Do I have the right to learn about sexuality and HIV/AIDS in school in Oklahoma?
  • Oklahoma state law does not require sexuality education. Local school boards decide whether or not to teach sex ed and which subjects this education must cover and the grade level in which topics are introduced.
  • If sexuality education is taught, then abstinence must be covered and stressed as the only completely effective protection against unplanned pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and HIV/AIDS.
  • Teaching about contraceptives, such as condoms, the Pill, or the Patch, is not required.
  • Oklahoma received $690,342 in federal funds for abstinence-only-until-marriage programs in Fiscal Year 2006. Think that money could be put to better use? Want to see comprehensive sex ed classes in your school? You can make a difference! Learn more about your state at SIECUS.org, get in touch with a local org like the Planned Parenthood of Central Oklahoma and be sure to download our Roadmap.
HIV/AIDS Education
  • Oklahoma state law requires HIV/AIDS education.
  • Abstinence must be taught as the only completely effective protection against unplanned pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and HIV/AIDS when transmitted sexually.
  • Teaching about contraceptives, such as condoms, the Pill, or the Patch, is also required.
  • HIV/AIDS education classes are required to teach teens “among other things, engaging in homosexual activity is primarily responsible for contact with the AIDS virus.”
  • You do not need your parents’ permission to participate in sexuality education or HIV/AIDS education classes. But your parents can take you out of the classes if they object to what is being taught.

What are my rights as a gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, or questioning (GLBTQ) teen in Oklahoma?

  • Public schools in your state have no Safe Schools Law in effect, which is a statewide anti-harassment and/or nondiscrimination law that includes the categories of sexual orientation and gender identity. But some school districts have decided to adopt their own Safe Schools policies.
  • There are statewide anti-discrimination laws, but they do not clearly include sexual orientation or gender identity. State hate crimes laws also do not include sexual orientation or 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 click here. No one deserves harassment or should have to put up with it.

 

 

Sources

  1. State Minor Consent Laws: A Summary, Center for Adolescent Health and the Law, 2003.
  2.  “Mandatory Delays and Biased Information Requirements,” Center for Reproductive Law and Policy. August 2006.
  3. “Medicaid Funding for Medically Necessary Abortions,” Center for Reproductive Law and Policy.
  4. “Minors' Access to Contraceptive Services,” State Policies in Brief, Alan Guttmacher Institute. November 2006.
  6. “Minors’ Access to STD Services,” State Policies in Brief, Alan Guttmacher Institute. November 2006.
  7. “Anonymous and Confidential HIV Testing Policies, 2006”,State Health Facts, The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
  8. “State Profiles: A Portrait of Sexuality Education and Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Programs in the States,” Public Policy Office. Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS). Accessed on February 2005.
  9. “Sex and STD/HIV Education,” State Policies in Brief, The Alan Guttmacher Institute. November 2006.
  10. State of the States 2004: A Policy Analysis of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Safer Schools Issues. Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network.
  11. “Parental Involvement in Minors’ Abortions,” State Policies in Brief, The Alan Guttmacher Institute. November 2006.

 
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