So, according to the FDA, it’s all right for 17-year-olds to take the ‘morning after pill’ (which can work by preventing implantation of an embryo, not just preventing the creation of an embryo).

But the same 17-year-old in California would need parental consent for a tanning booth. A 17-year-old in most, if not every, state would need parental consent to go on a school field trip. And it’s recommended by medical associations that this 17-year-old, like adult women, should have a yearly gynecological exam in order to get regular birth control; but no medical advice (no prescription) would be required for a medication that can be up to 20 times the dosage of regular birth control pills