Bill Text: TX SB344 | 2017-2018 | 85th Legislature | Comm Sub
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Relating to the authority of emergency medical services personnel of certain emergency medical services providers to transport a person for emergency detention.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)
Status: (Passed) 2017-06-09 - Effective immediately [SB344 Detail]
Download: Texas-2017-SB344-Comm_Sub.html
Bill Title: Relating to the authority of emergency medical services personnel of certain emergency medical services providers to transport a person for emergency detention.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)
Status: (Passed) 2017-06-09 - Effective immediately [SB344 Detail]
Download: Texas-2017-SB344-Comm_Sub.html
By: West | S.B. No. 344 | |
(In the Senate - Filed December 16, 2016; January 30, 2017, | ||
read first time and referred to Committee on Health & Human | ||
Services; April 10, 2017, reported adversely, with favorable | ||
Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 8, Nays 0; | ||
April 10, 2017, sent to printer.) | ||
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 344 | By: Uresti |
|
||
|
||
relating to the authority of emergency medical services personnel | ||
of certain emergency medical services providers to transport a | ||
person for emergency detention. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 573, Health and Safety | ||
Code, is amended by adding Section 573.0001 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 573.0001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: | ||
(1) "Emergency medical services personnel" and | ||
"emergency medical services provider" have the meanings assigned by | ||
Section 773.003. | ||
(2) "Law enforcement agency" has the meaning assigned | ||
by Article 59.01, Code of Criminal Procedure. | ||
SECTION 2. Section 573.001(d), Health and Safety Code, is | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
(d) A peace officer who takes a person into custody under | ||
Subsection (a) shall immediately: | ||
(1) transport the apprehended person to: | ||
(A) [ |
||
mental health facility; or | ||
(B) [ |
||
suitable by the local mental health authority, if an appropriate | ||
inpatient mental health facility is not available; or | ||
(2) transfer the apprehended person to emergency | ||
medical services personnel of an emergency medical services | ||
provider in accordance with a memorandum of understanding executed | ||
under Section 573.005 for transport to a facility described by | ||
Subdivision (1)(A) or (B). | ||
SECTION 3. Sections 573.002(a), (d), and (e), Health and | ||
Safety Code, are amended to read as follows: | ||
(a) A peace officer shall immediately file with a facility a | ||
notification of detention after transporting a person to that | ||
facility in accordance with Section 573.001. Emergency medical | ||
services personnel of an emergency medical services provider who | ||
transport a person to a facility at the request of a peace officer | ||
made in accordance with a memorandum of understanding executed | ||
under Section 573.005 shall immediately file with the facility the | ||
notification of detention completed by the peace officer who made | ||
the request. | ||
(d) The peace officer shall provide [ |
||
of detention on the following form: | ||
Notification--Emergency Detention NO. ____________________ | ||
DATE:_______________ TIME:_______________ | ||
THE STATE OF TEXAS | ||
FOR THE BEST INTEREST AND PROTECTION OF: | ||
______________________________________ | ||
NOTIFICATION OF EMERGENCY DETENTION | ||
Now comes _____________________________, a peace officer with | ||
(name of agency) _____________________________, of the State of | ||
Texas, and states as follows: | ||
1. I have reason to believe and do believe that (name of person to | ||
be detained) __________________________ evidences mental illness. | ||
2. I have reason to believe and do believe that the above-named | ||
person evidences a substantial risk of serious harm to | ||
himself/herself or others based upon the following: | ||
________________________________________________________________ | ||
________________________________________________________________ | ||
________________________________________________________________ | ||
________________________________________________________________ | ||
3. I have reason to believe and do believe that the above risk of | ||
harm is imminent unless the above-named person is immediately | ||
restrained. | ||
4. My beliefs are based upon the following recent behavior, overt | ||
acts, attempts, statements, or threats observed by me or reliably | ||
reported to me: | ||
________________________________________________________________ | ||
________________________________________________________________ | ||
________________________________________________________________ | ||
________________________________________________________________ | ||
5. The names, addresses, and relationship to the above-named | ||
person of those persons who reported or observed recent behavior, | ||
acts, attempts, statements, or threats of the above-named person | ||
are (if applicable): | ||
________________________________________________________________ | ||
________________________________________________________________ | ||
________________________________________________________________ | ||
________________________________________________________________ | ||
For the above reasons, I present this notification to seek | ||
temporary admission to the (name of facility) | ||
_________________________ inpatient mental health facility or | ||
hospital facility for the detention of (name of person to be | ||
detained) __________________________ on an emergency basis. | ||
6. Was the person restrained in any way? Yes □ No □ | ||
_________________________ BADGE NO. _____________________ | ||
PEACE OFFICER'S SIGNATURE | ||
Address: _________________________ Zip Code: ____________________ | ||
Telephone: ______________________ | ||
_________________________ | ||
SIGNATURE OF EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES PERSONNEL (if applicable) | ||
Address: _________________________ Zip Code: ____________________ | ||
Telephone: ______________________ | ||
A mental health facility or hospital emergency department may not | ||
require a peace officer or emergency medical services personnel to | ||
execute any form other than this form as a predicate to accepting | ||
for temporary admission a person detained by a peace officer under | ||
Section 573.001, [ |
||
the officer under that section or by emergency medical services | ||
personnel of an emergency medical services provider at the request | ||
of the officer made in accordance with a memorandum of | ||
understanding executed under Section 573.005, Health and Safety | ||
Code. | ||
(e) A mental health facility or hospital emergency | ||
department may not require a peace officer or emergency medical | ||
services personnel to execute any form other than the form provided | ||
by Subsection (d) as a predicate to accepting for temporary | ||
admission a person detained by a peace officer under Section | ||
573.001 and transported by the officer under that section or by | ||
emergency medical services personnel of an emergency medical | ||
services provider at the request of the officer made in accordance | ||
with a memorandum of understanding executed under Section 573.005. | ||
SECTION 4. Subchapter A, Chapter 573, Health and Safety | ||
Code, is amended by adding Section 573.005 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 573.005. TRANSPORTATION FOR EMERGENCY DETENTION BY | ||
EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES PROVIDER; MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING. | ||
(a) A law enforcement agency and an emergency medical services | ||
provider may execute a memorandum of understanding under which | ||
emergency medical services personnel employed by the provider may | ||
transport a person taken into custody under Section 573.001 by a | ||
peace officer employed by the law enforcement agency. | ||
(b) A memorandum of understanding must: | ||
(1) address responsibility for the cost of | ||
transporting the person taken into custody; and | ||
(2) be approved by the county in which the law | ||
enforcement agency is located and the local mental health authority | ||
that provides services in that county with respect to provisions of | ||
the memorandum that address the responsibility for the cost of | ||
transporting the person. | ||
(c) A peace officer may request that emergency medical | ||
services personnel transport a person taken into custody by the | ||
officer under Section 573.001 only if: | ||
(1) the law enforcement agency that employs the | ||
officer and the emergency medical services provider that employs | ||
the personnel have executed a memorandum of understanding under | ||
this section; and | ||
(2) the officer determines that transferring the | ||
person for transport is safe for both the person and the personnel. | ||
(d) Emergency medical services personnel may, at the | ||
request of a peace officer, transport a person taken into custody by | ||
the officer under Section 573.001 to the appropriate facility, as | ||
provided by that section, if the law enforcement agency that | ||
employs the officer and the emergency medical services provider | ||
that employs the personnel have executed a memorandum of | ||
understanding under this section. | ||
(e) A peace officer who transfers a person to emergency | ||
medical services personnel under a memorandum of understanding | ||
executed under this section for transport to the appropriate | ||
facility must provide: | ||
(1) to the person the notice described by Section | ||
573.001(g); and | ||
(2) to the personnel a completed notification of | ||
detention about the person on the form provided by Section | ||
573.002(d). | ||
SECTION 5. Section 573.021(a), Health and Safety Code, is | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
(a) A facility shall temporarily accept a person for whom an | ||
application for detention is filed or for whom a peace officer or | ||
emergency medical services personnel of an emergency medical | ||
services provider transporting the person in accordance with a | ||
memorandum of understanding executed under Section 573.005 files a | ||
notification of detention completed by the peace officer under | ||
Section 573.002(a). | ||
SECTION 6. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives | ||
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as | ||
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this | ||
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this | ||
Act takes effect September 1, 2017. | ||
* * * * * |