Senate Bill S7638

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S7638

 TITLE OF BILL :
An act to amend chapter 408 of the laws of 1999 constituting Kendra's
Law, in relation to making such provisions permanent


 PURPOSE :
This bill makes permanent Kendra's Law, which provides a system for
obtaining court ordered Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) for
certain individuals with mental illness.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :
Sections 1 of the bill amends section 18 of chapter 408 of the laws of
1999 to remove the June 30, 2010 sunset date and make the law
permanent.

Section 2 of the bill provides for an immediate effective date.

 JUSTIFICATION :
Kendra's Law was first enacted in 1999 to ensure that individuals with
mental illness and a history of hospitalizations or violence
participate in community based services appropriate to their needs.
The law creates a statutory framework for court-ordered Assisted
Outpatient Treatment (AOT). In 2005 Kendra's Law was extended for
another 5 years until June, 2010 and an independent evaluation of the
              

laws' implementation and effectiveness was required. That report was
completed June 2009 by Duke University, The MacArthur Foundation, and
Policy Research Associates, Inc.

The statewide implementation of Kendra's Law has resulted in
beneficial structural changes to local mental health service delivery
systems. New mechanisms for identifying, investigating and assessing
individuals, developed in order to fulfill the requirements of AOT
implementation, have improved access to services for high need
individuals, treatment plan development, discharge planning and
coordination of service planning. The implementation of AOT has also
supported the development of more collaborative relationships between
the mental health and court systems.

The independent study required by statute that was completed in June
2009 concluded that New York State's AOT Program improves a range of
important outcomes for its recipients, apparently without negative
consequences to recipients. The evaluation also concluded that the
increased services available under AOT clearly improve recipient
outcomes. Furthermore, the AOT court order itself and its attendant
monitoring, appear to offer additional benefits in improving outcomes.
It was also determined that the AOT order exerts a critical effect on
service providers stimulating their efforts to prioritize care for AOT
recipients.

In addition to these positive outcomes, it is important to note that
the constitutionality of the statutory scheme for AOT has been upheld
by the courts ( SEE MATTER OF K.L. , 1 NY3d 362 (2004).   IN MATTER OF
K.L. , the Court of Appeals found that Kendra's Law helps individuals
who have a history of treatment noncompliance to safely survive in the
community, in a manner which does not impinge upon the
constitutionally protected liberty interests of these individuals.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
New bill.

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :
No new cost.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
Immediately.