Bill Text: CA AB2291 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Mental health services: involuntary treatment.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-04-19 - In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author. [AB2291 Detail]
Download: California-2021-AB2291-Amended.html
|
Amended
IN
Assembly
March 24, 2022 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION
Assembly Bill
No. 2291
| Introduced by Assembly Member Muratsuchi |
February 16, 2022 |
An act to amend Section 4031 of Sections 5150, 5152.1, and 5250.1 of, and to add Sections 5156 and 5157 to, the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to mental health.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2291, as amended, Muratsuchi.
Mental health services: planning, research, and evaluation. involuntary treatment.
Existing law, the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act, provides for the involuntary commitment and treatment of persons with specified mental disorders for the protection of the persons committed. Under the act, when a person, as a result of a mental health disorder, is a danger to others, or to themselves, or gravely disabled, the person may, upon probable cause, be taken into custody and placed in a facility designated by the county and approved by the State Department of Health Care Services for up to 72 hours for evaluation and treatment. If certain conditions are met after the 72-hour detention, the act authorizes the certification of the person for a 14-day maximum period of intensive treatment, and then a 30-day maximum period of intensive treatment after the 14-day period. Existing law requires the
professional person in charge of the facility providing the 72-hour evaluation and treatment or the intensive treatment to notify the county behavioral health director when the person is released and certain conditions apply.
This bill would, for each person admitted for evaluation and treatment, require the facility providing the 72-hour evaluation and treatment to keep with the person’s medical record contact information for an individual designated by the patient as their medical emergency contact, and would require that facility to develop a continuity of care plan for the person, which the facility shall make available to certain individuals and facilities, as specified. The bill would require, before the release of a person from the 72-hour detention or the intensive treatment, the professional person in charge of the facility providing the treatment to
provide the county behavioral health director with the medical emergency contact information, the continuity of care plan, and the possible release date of the person, and would require the county behavioral health director to contact the person’s medical emergency contact and provide that individual with the person’s continuity of care plan. The bill would also require a county to offer a person who is released from involuntary detention after receiving 72-hour evaluation and treatment or intensive treatment, and who is homeless, a local crisis bed or recuperative care upon their release from the designated facility providing the involuntary treatment. By imposing new duties on county officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts
for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
Existing law requires the State Department of Health Care Services to perform various functions with regard to the statewide delivery of mental health services, including, among other things, implementing a system of required performance reporting by local mental health programs.
This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes to those provisions.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee:Bill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 5150 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:5150.
(a) When a person, as a result of a mental health disorder, is a danger to others, or to(b) When determining if a person should be taken into custody pursuant to subdivision (a), the individual making that determination shall apply the provisions of Section 5150.05, and shall not be limited to consideration of the danger of imminent harm.
(c) The professional person in charge of a facility designated by the county for evaluation and treatment, member of the attending staff, or
professional person designated by the county shall assess the person to determine whether he or she
the person can be properly served without being detained. If, in the judgment of the professional person in charge of the facility designated by the county for evaluation and treatment, member of the attending staff, or professional person designated by the county, the person can be properly served without being detained, he or she the person shall be provided evaluation, crisis intervention, or other inpatient or outpatient services on a voluntary basis. Nothing in this subdivision shall be interpreted to This subdivision does not prevent a peace officer from delivering individuals
an individual to a designated facility for assessment under this section. Furthermore, the assessment requirement of this subdivision shall not be interpreted to does not require a peace officers officer to perform any additional duties other than those specified in Sections 5150.1 and 5150.2.
(d) Whenever If
a person is evaluated by a professional person in charge of a facility designated by the county for evaluation or treatment, member of the attending staff, or professional person designated by the county and is found to be in need of mental health services, but is not admitted to the facility, all available alternative services provided pursuant to subdivision (c) shall be offered offered, as determined by the county mental health director.
(e) If, in the judgment of the professional person in charge of the facility designated by the county for evaluation and treatment, member of the attending staff, or the professional person designated by the county, the person cannot be properly served without being detained, the admitting
facility shall require an application in writing stating the circumstances under which the person’s condition was called to the attention of the peace officer, professional person in charge of the facility designated by the county for evaluation and treatment, member of the attending staff, or professional person designated by the county, and stating that the peace officer, professional person in charge of the facility designated by the county for evaluation and treatment, member of the attending staff, or professional person designated by the county has probable cause to believe that the person is, as a result of a mental health disorder, a danger to others, or to himself or herself, themselves, or gravely disabled. The application shall also record whether the historical course of the person’s mental disorder was
considered in the determination, pursuant to Section 5150.05. If the probable cause is based on the statement of a person other than the peace officer, professional person in charge of the facility designated by the county for evaluation and treatment, member of the attending staff, or professional person designated by the county, the person shall be liable in a civil action for intentionally giving a statement that he or she the person knows to be false. A copy of the application shall be treated as the original.
(f) At the time a person is taken into custody for evaluation, or within a reasonable time thereafter, unless a responsible relative or the guardian or conservator of the person is in possession of the person’s personal property, the person
taking him or her
them into custody shall take reasonable precautions to preserve and safeguard the personal property in the possession of or on the premises occupied by the person. The person taking him or her them into custody shall then furnish to the court a report generally describing the person’s property so preserved and safeguarded and its disposition, in substantially the form set forth in Section 5211, except that if a responsible relative or the guardian or conservator of the person is in possession of the person’s property, the report shall include only the name of the relative or guardian or conservator and the location of the property, whereupon responsibility of the person taking him or her
them into custody for that property shall terminate. As used in this section, “responsible relative” includes the spouse, parent, adult child, domestic partner, grandparent, grandchild, or adult brother or sister of the person.
(g) (1) Each person, at the time he or she the person is first taken into custody under this section, shall be provided, by the person who takes him or her them into custody, the following information orally in a language or modality accessible to the person. If the person cannot
understand an oral advisement, the information shall be provided in writing. The information shall be in substantially the following form:
My name is . I am a
_____
(peace officer/mental health professional)
_____
. with
_____
(name of agency)
_____
. You are not under criminal arrest, but I am taking you for an examination by mental health professionals at .
_____
(name of
facility)
_____
You will be told your rights by the mental health staff. |
(2) If taken into custody at his or her the person’s own residence, the person shall also be provided the following information:
You may bring a few personal items with you, which I will have to approve. Please inform me if you need assistance turning off any appliance or water. You may make a phone call and leave a note to tell your friends or family where you have been taken.
(h) The designated
facility shall keep, for each patient evaluated, a record of the advisement given pursuant to subdivision (g) which shall include all of the following:
(1) The name of the person detained for evaluation.
(2) The name and position of the peace officer or mental health professional taking the person into custody.
(3) The date the advisement was completed.
(4) Whether the advisement was completed.
(5) The language or modality used to give the advisement.
(6) If the advisement was not completed, a statement of good cause, as defined by regulations of the State Department of Health Care Services.
(i) (1) Each person admitted to a facility designated by the county for evaluation and treatment shall be given the following information by admission staff of the facility. The information shall be given orally and in writing and in a language or modality accessible to the person. The written information shall be available to the person in English and in the language that is the person’s primary means of communication. Accommodations for other disabilities that may affect communication shall also be provided. The information shall be in substantially the following form:
My name is . |
My position here is . |
You are being placed into this psychiatric facility because it is our professional opinion that, as a result of a mental health disorder, you are likely to (check applicable): |
◻ Harm yourself. ◻ Harm someone else. ◻ Be unable to take care of your own food, clothing, and housing needs. We believe this is true because |
(list of the facts upon which the allegation of dangerous or gravely disabled due to mental health disorder is based, including pertinent facts arising from the admission interview). |
You will be held for a period up to 72 hours. During the 72 hours you may also be transferred to another facility. You may request to be evaluated or treated at a facility of your choice. You may request to be evaluated or treated by a mental health professional of your choice. We cannot guarantee the facility or mental health professional you choose will be available, but we will honor your choice if we can. |
During these 72 hours you will be evaluated by the facility staff, and you may be given treatment, including medications. It is possible for you to be released before the end of the 72 hours. But if the staff decides that you need continued treatment you can be held for a longer period of time. If
you are held longer than 72 hours, you have the right to a lawyer and a qualified interpreter and a hearing before a judge. If you are unable to pay for the lawyer, then one will be provided to you free of charge. |
If you have questions about your legal rights, you may contact the county Patients’ Rights Advocate at
_____
(phone number for the county Patients’ Rights Advocacy office)
_____
. Your 72-hour period began
_____
(date/time)
_____
. |
(2) If the notice is given in a county where weekends and holidays are excluded from the 72-hour period, the patient
person shall be informed of this fact.
(j) For each patient person admitted for evaluation and treatment, the facility shall keep with the patient’s
person’s medical record a record of the advisement given pursuant to subdivision (i), which shall include all of the following:
(1) The name of the person performing the advisement.
(2) The date of the advisement.
(3) Whether the advisement was completed.
(4) The language or modality used to communicate the advisement.
(5) If the advisement was not completed, a statement of good cause.
(k) For each person admitted for evaluation and treatment, the facility shall keep with the person’s medical record
contact information for an individual designated by the patient as their medical emergency contact.
SEC. 2.
Section 5152.1 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:5152.1.
(a) (1) The professional person in charge of the facility providing 72-hour evaluation and treatment, or(a)
(A) The peace officer requests such the notification at the time he or she makes the application
they make the application, and the peace officer certifies at that time in writing that the person has been referred to the facility under circumstances which, based upon an allegation of facts regarding actions witnessed by the officer or another person, would support the filing of a criminal complaint.
(b)
(B) The notice is limited to the person’s name, address, date of admission for 72-hour evaluation and treatment, and date of release.
If
(2) If a police officer, law enforcement agency, or designee of the law enforcement agency, possesses any record of information obtained pursuant to the notification requirements of this section, subdivision, the officer, agency, or designee shall destroy that record two years after receipt of notification.
(b) (1) Before the person is released from the 72-hour detention, the professional person in charge of the facility providing 72-hour evaluation and treatment, or that person’s
designee, shall provide the county behavioral health director, or the director’s designee, with all of the following information:
(A) The medical emergency contact information specified in Section 5150.
(B) The continuity of care plan developed pursuant to Section 5156.
(C) The possible release date of the person.
(2) To the extent authorized under, and in accordance with, applicable state and federal privacy laws that govern medical information, the county behavioral health director, or the director’s designee, shall contact the person’s medical emergency contact, as specified in Section 5150, and provide that individual with the persons’s continuity of care plan.
SEC. 3.
Section 5156 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:5156.
(a) The facility providing 72-hour evaluation and treatment shall develop a continuity of care plan for the person.(b) To the extent authorized under, and in accordance with, applicable state and federal privacy laws that govern medical information, the facility shall make the continuity of care plan available to all of the following:
(1) Upon the release of the person from the 72-hour detention, the county behavioral health director, or the director’s designee.
(2) Upon the transfer of the person for 14 days of intensive treatment pursuant to Section 5250, the facility providing intensive treatment.
(3) Upon the scheduling of a certification review hearing required pursuant to Section 5254, the person conducting the certification review hearing, as described in Section 5256.1.
SEC. 4.
Section 5157 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read:5157.
(a) A county shall offer a person who is released from involuntary detention after receiving 72-hour evaluation and treatment pursuant to this article or intensive treatment pursuant to Article 4 (commencing with Section 5250) or Article 4.7 (commencing with Section 5270.10), and who is homeless, placement in a local crisis bed or recuperative care upon their release from the designated facility providing the involuntary treatment.(b) A county shall not offer placement in a congregate shelter in lieu of placement in a local crisis bed or recuperative care.
(c) The person is not required to accept the county’s offer of placement in a local crisis bed or recuperative
care.
SEC. 5.
Section 5250.1 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:5250.1.
(a) (1) The professional person in charge of a facility providing intensive(a)
(A) The peace officer has requested notification at the time he or she makes they make the application for 72-hour evaluation.
(b)
(B) The peace officer has certified in writing at the time he or she they made the application that the person has been referred to the facility under circumstances which, based upon an allegation of facts regarding actions witnessed by the officer or another person, would support the filing of a criminal complaint.
(c)
(C) The notice is limited to the person’s name, address, date of admission for 72-hour evaluation, date of certification for intensive treatment, and date
of release.
If
(2) If a police officer, law enforcement agency, or designee of the law enforcement agency, possesses any record of information obtained pursuant to the notification requirements of this section, the officer, agency, or designee shall destroy that record two years after receipt of notification.
(b) (1) The professional person in charge of the facility providing intensive treatment pursuant to Section 5250 or 5270.15, or that person’s designee, shall notify the county behavioral health
director, or the director’s designee, of the date of the certification review hearing.
(2) Before the person is released from intensive treatment, the professional person in charge of the facility providing intensive treatment pursuant to Section 5250 or 5270.15, or that person’s designee, shall provide the county behavioral health director, or the director’s designee, with all of the following information:
(A) The medical emergency contact information specified in Section 5150.
(B) The continuity of care plan developed pursuant to Section 5151.1.
(C) The possible release date of the person.
(3) The county behavioral health director, or the director’s designee, shall contact the persons’s medical emergency contact, as specified in Section 5150, and provide that individual with the persons’s continuity of care plan.
SEC. 6.
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.The State Department of Health Care Services shall, to the extent resources are available, do all of the following:
(a)Conduct, sponsor, coordinate, and disseminate the results of research and evaluation directed to the public policy issues entailed in the selection of resource utilization and service delivery in the state.
(b)Make available technical assistance to local mental health programs that incorporates the results of research, evaluation, and quality assurance to local mental health programs.
(c)Implement a system of required performance reporting by local mental health
programs.
(d)Perform any other activities useful to improving and maintaining the quality of community mental health programs.
