At least 26 states have banned pelvic exams without consent on patients who are sedated, anesthetized, or unconscious, and a federal rule that took effect in April 2024 extends similar protections to virtually every U.S. hospital through the Medicare and Medicaid program. California was the first state to act, in 2003. Most of the others passed their laws in the last several years, after research showed that many medical students had performed pelvic exams on anesthetized patients without the patient’s specific permission.
States With Laws on the Books
The following states have enacted statutes specifically requiring informed consent before a pelvic exam is performed on a sedated, anesthetized, or unconscious patient:
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Maine
- Maryland
- New York
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- Utah
- Virginia
This list is not exhaustive. The total count of states with these protections is at least 26, but not every one is individually cataloged in a single government source. Additional bills continue to move through state legislatures. Indiana, for instance, was still considering its own ban as recently as early 2026. If your state isn’t listed, check the current text of your state code or your legislature’s website before assuming there is no protection.
The Federal Rule That Covers the Gap
On April 1, 2024, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services updated its hospital guidelines to require informed consent before medical students, residents, or other trainees perform sensitive exams on patients. The rule covers breast, pelvic, prostate, and rectal exams done for educational or training purposes.1CMS. QSO-24-10-Hospitals
Because the rule is tied to Medicare and Medicaid participation, it reaches nearly every hospital in the country. Consent forms must disclose whether practitioners other than the primary surgeon will be performing tasks related to the procedure, including whether students will be conducting exams for educational purposes. Patients have the right to refuse training-related exams and to refuse any exam they did not previously agree to while under anesthesia. Written consent is required for any procedure performed under anesthesia, and written documentation of consent is required in all cases.1CMS. QSO-24-10-Hospitals
If your state has no dedicated statute, the CMS rule is still likely to apply to the hospital where you’re treated.
What Counts as Valid Consent
State laws vary, but a general surgical consent form is not enough in most states that have addressed this issue. The consent typically has to be for the pelvic exam specifically.
Florida requires written consent “specific to, and expressly identifying, the pelvic examination.” If the patient is conscious, verbal consent must also be obtained on top of the written form.2Florida Senate. 2024 Florida Statutes 456.51 – Consent for Pelvic Examinations Connecticut requires hospitals and outpatient surgical facilities to develop written consent procedures for intimate exams that are separate from general consent paperwork.3Connecticut General Assembly. PA 22-33 Requiring Express Written Consent to Intimate Examinations Utah goes further, spelling out formatting requirements down to the font: the consent document must carry the heading “CONSENT FOR EXAMINATION OF PELVIC REGION” in at least 18-point boldface type, name the specific provider authorized to perform the exam, and include checkboxes letting the patient separately consent to or decline the exam for treatment purposes and for any additional exam by a student for training purposes.4Utah Legislature. Utah Code 58-1-509 – Patient Consent for Certain Medical Examinations
Disclosure of who will perform the exam is a common thread. When medical students or residents are involved, most states require patients to be told before going under anesthesia, and patients can refuse student involvement without affecting their care.
When the Rule Applies, and When It Doesn’t
The consent requirements apply specifically when the patient is or will be sedated, under anesthesia, or unconscious. Most laws also distinguish between exams performed for the patient’s medical benefit and exams performed solely for educational purposes. An exam that is part of the planned surgery or necessary for diagnosing the patient’s condition generally falls within the scope of the existing surgical consent. The laws target exams that serve no direct medical purpose and exist only to give trainees practice.
Every state law also carries exceptions:
- Medical necessity. If a pelvic exam is needed for diagnosis or treatment during a procedure the patient already consented to, separate consent is generally not required.
- Emergencies. When immediate medical intervention is needed and the patient cannot give consent, providers can perform medically necessary exams without prior written authorization.
- Court-ordered evidence collection. Oregon and Florida both explicitly allow pelvic exams without patient consent when a court has ordered the exam for evidence collection.5Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 676.360 – Pelvic Examinations2Florida Senate. 2024 Florida Statutes 456.51 – Consent for Pelvic Examinations
Florida also carves out labor and delivery. If a pregnant patient arrives with contractions, written consent for the initial pelvic exam covers subsequent exams during that hospital stay, though the form must tell the patient that multiple exams may be performed.2Florida Senate. 2024 Florida Statutes 456.51 – Consent for Pelvic Examinations
What Happens If a Provider Violates the Law
Consequences fall into three categories. First, professional discipline. Oregon’s statute states that anyone who performs a pelvic exam on an anesthetized patient without consent “is subject to discipline by any licensing board that licenses the person.”5Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 676.360 – Pelvic Examinations New York classifies it as professional misconduct for a provider to supervise or perform a non-consensual pelvic exam on an unconscious patient. Discipline can range from formal reprimand to license suspension or revocation.
Second, criminal liability. In some states, a violation can be charged as a misdemeanor.
Third, civil lawsuits. A patient who undergoes any medical procedure without authorization may have grounds for a claim of medical battery, which does not require proof that the provider was negligent or that the patient suffered physical injury. The claim turns on whether the patient knew about the procedure and authorized it. A separate informed consent claim is available where the patient authorized the procedure but was not told material facts, such as that a student rather than the surgeon would perform it. Both theories can be pursued in the same case.
Steps To Take If You Think This Happened to You
Request your complete medical records first, including operative notes and any consent forms you signed. Those records will show what was documented and whether a separate consent for a pelvic exam appears.
You can file a complaint with your state medical board, which has authority to investigate and discipline licensed providers. If you were treated at a hospital that accepts Medicare or Medicaid, you can also file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The HHS Office for Civil Rights handles patient rights complaints, which can be filed online or in writing.6HHS.gov. Filing with OCR For a possible civil lawsuit, talk with an attorney who handles medical malpractice or patient rights cases. These claims are subject to statutes of limitations that vary by state, so timing matters.
If Your State Isn’t on the List
A state without a dedicated pelvic exam statute is not a state where non-consensual exams are legal. General informed consent principles apply to all medical procedures. The 2024 CMS guidance creates a federal baseline for hospitals participating in Medicare and Medicaid. Medical battery and informed consent claims exist under common law in every state. Dedicated statutes make the rules clearer, the consent process more standardized, and the consequences for violations more explicit, but the underlying right to decide what happens to your body while you’re unconscious does not depend on your state legislature having said so.