Yes. Once you turn 18 years of age, you are legally an adult and can consent to all types of medical care, regardless of where or with whom you live. That includes gender affirming care, which may involve hormone therapy or gender affirming surgery.
In general, the answer is yes. While Connecticut has a number of exceptions to the general rule that only adults (individuals 18 years of age or older) may consent to medical care for a minor (individuals under the age of 18), gender affirming care involving hormone therapy, voice therapy, or general medical care involving gender affirming care requires a parent or guardian to consent to such care. The only exception to this rule is mental health care and treatment, regardless of the reason for which a minor seeks that type of care.
There are many clinic and hospital based resources that you can choose from in Connecticut that will provide compassionate and supportive gender based care to you and that will support your family as well. Please see the resource page offered by the Connecticut State Medical Society by going here.
Connecticut law guarantees minors the right to seek both inpatient (in a behavioral health hospital) and outpatient (with a therapist, psychologist, or psychiatrist) without a parent or guardian’s consent. The law is a bit detailed and complicated, but here are the highlights:
Inpatient Care
If you are 16 or 17 years old, you are considered an adult for purposes of inpatient mental health treatment. That means you have the legal right to check yourself into an inpatient mental health hospital and to make all treatment decisions while you are admitted to the hospital (assuming you are able to do so). If you are 14 or 15 years old, you have the legal right to check yourself into an inpatient hospital, but your parents or guardians must be notified within 24 hours of your check-in time.
Outpatient Care (Therapy)
Any minor (a person under the age of 18 years of age) can obtain and participate in outpatient mental health treatment, specifically talk therapy, if certain conditions are met. Some of those conditions are:
- the minor would otherwise reject treatment,
- treatment is clinically indicated,
- the failure to provide treatment would be seriously detrimental to the minor's well-being,
- the minor has knowingly and voluntarily sought the treatment, and
- in the opinion of the provider, the minor is mature enough to participate in treatment productively.
No. The state law that allows minors to seek and engage in outpatient mental health therapy specifically prohibits minor from obtaining any prescription drug without a parent or guardian’s consent.
Everything you speak about to your mental health professional is confidential, unless you say something that indicates to the professional that you are in some way going to harm yourself, or others. If your therapist believes that either you or someone else is in danger, then they have an obligation to take whatever steps are necessary to prevent the harm. In addition, if you tell your therapist something that indicates either you, or another minor has been abused, neglected or is in imminent danger, then the therapist must report that to the State Department of Children and Families.
Yes! The law does not distinguish between minors who live with their parents or guardians, and those minors who are in DCF custody and live either in foster care or in a group home or residential setting.
