S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
812
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
January 11, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. BRAUNSTEIN -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Mental Health
AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to clarifying the
standards for involuntary in-patient care and treatment
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known as the "New York
State Mental Health Reform Act".
§ 2. Legislative findings. With the intent of restoring dignity and
transparency to our state's treatment and care of mentally ill patients,
the state engaged in reforming procedures and policies in implementing
preferred outpatient treatment through a structured outpatient treatment
process commonly referred to as Kendra's Law. The law was to ensure
those individuals requiring mental health treatment were afforded a
dignified process in treatment while allowing the patient's liberty to
be free to pursue their daily lives without stigma or negative connota-
tions attached to mental health.
Unfortunately, the practical application of the state's mental hygiene
laws has allowed thousands of people who require more stringent mental
health protocols for treatment to go without appropriate oversight to
ensure their treatment is pursued thus, resulting in severe behavioral
transgression to include a large degree of homelessness, criminal behav-
ior, toxic drug use and alcoholism. The severity of abhorrent outcomes
as the result of a failure to give medical professionals, as well as
judicial direction in determining certain behavioral dysfunction(s) that
display a need for in-patient care, has severely impacted patient's
health, welfare, and their ability to regularly function in society. All
too often, we are seeing unsuspecting citizens killed or maimed as the
result of violent behavior by patients who have either disregarded or
rejected available or mandated mental health services due to their dete-
riorating mental state, which compounds the deleterious outcome for the
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01614-01-3
A. 812 2
patient as well as society. Although outpatient commitment is the
preferred mode of treatment for patients seeking mental health services,
the occasion arises where judicial intervention to seek immediate,
mandated treatment through court ordered in-patient treatment, in order
to facilitate an expedited pathway for seeking medical or psychiatric
help is necessary to prevent on-going negative behavioral episodes that
places the patient or the public at risk of physical injury or death.
§ 3. The second, third and fourth undesignated paragraphs of section
9.01 of the mental hygiene law, as amended by chapter 723 of the laws of
1989, are amended to read as follows:
"in need of involuntary care and treatment" means that a person has a
mental illness for which care and treatment as a patient in a hospital
is essential to such person's welfare and [whose] WHICH SO IMPAIRS THE
PERSON'S judgment [is so impaired that he] THAT THE PERSON is unable to
understand the need for such care and treatment. CARE AND TREATMENT IN A
HOSPITAL SHALL BE CONSIDERED ESSENTIAL TO A PERSON'S WELFARE IF, IN THE
ABSENCE OF SUCH CARE AND TREATMENT, THE PERSON'S MENTAL ILLNESS IS LIKE-
LY TO RESULT IN SERIOUS HARM.
["likelihood to result in serious harm" or] "likely to result in seri-
ous harm" means PRESENTING A SUBSTANTIAL RISK OF: (a) [a substantial
risk of] physical OR MENTAL harm to the person as manifested by:
(I) threats of or attempts at suicide or serious bodily harm;
(II) SUBSTANTIAL INTERFERENCE WITH THE PERSON'S ABILITY TO MEET THE
PERSON'S NEEDS FOR FOOD, CLOTHING, SHELTER OR MEDICAL CARE; or
(III) other conduct demonstrating that the person is dangerous to
himself or herself, or (b) [a substantial risk of physical harm to other
persons as manifested by] homicidal or other violent behavior by which
others are placed in reasonable fear of serious physical harm. EVALU-
ATION OF THE LIKELIHOOD THAT A PERSON'S MENTAL ILLNESS WILL RESULT IN
SERIOUS HARM SHALL INCLUDE CONSIDERATION OF ALL RELEVANT INFORMATION,
INCLUDING CREDIBLE REPORTS OF THE PERSON'S RECENT BEHAVIOR AND ANY KNOWN
RELEVANT ASPECTS OF THE PERSON'S MEDICAL AND BEHAVIORAL HISTORY.
"need for retention" means [that] THE NEED OF a person who has been
admitted to a hospital pursuant to this article [is in need] FOR A
FURTHER PERIOD of involuntary care and treatment in a hospital [for a
further period]. EVALUATION OF NEED FOR RETENTION SHALL INCLUDE CONSID-
ERATION OF THE PERSON'S PREPAREDNESS, WITH APPROPRIATE AND AVAILABLE
SUPPORT, TO ADHERE TO ESSENTIAL OUTPATIENT TREATMENT.
§ 4. Subdivision (a) of section 9.39 of the mental hygiene law, as
amended by chapter 789 of the laws of 1985, is amended to read as
follows:
(a) The director of any hospital maintaining adequate staff and facil-
ities for the observation, examination, care, and treatment of persons
alleged to be mentally ill and approved by the commissioner to receive
and retain patients pursuant to this section may receive and retain
therein as a patient for a period of fifteen days any person alleged to
have a mental illness for which immediate observation, care, and treat-
ment in a hospital is appropriate and which is likely to result in seri-
ous harm to himself, HERSELF or others. ["Likelihood to result in seri-
ous harm" as used in this article shall mean:
1. substantial risk of physical harm to himself as manifested by
threats of or attempts at suicide or serious bodily harm or other
conduct demonstrating that he is dangerous to himself, or
2. a substantial risk of physical harm to other persons as manifested
by homicidal or other violent behavior by which others are placed in
reasonable fear of serious physical harm.]
A. 812 3
The director shall cause to be entered upon the hospital records the
name of the person or persons, if any, who have brought such person to
the hospital and the details of the circumstances leading to the hospi-
talization of such person.
The director shall admit such person pursuant to the provisions of
this section only if a staff physician of the hospital upon examination
of such person finds that such person qualifies under the requirements
of this section. Such person shall not be retained for a period of more
than forty-eight hours unless within such period such finding is
confirmed after examination by another physician who shall be a member
of the psychiatric staff of the hospital. Such person shall be served,
at the time of admission, with written notice of his OR HER status and
rights as a patient under this section. Such notice shall contain the
patient's name. At the same time, such notice shall also be given to the
mental hygiene legal service and personally or by mail to such person or
persons, not to exceed three in number, as may be designated in writing
to receive such notice by the person alleged to be mentally ill. If at
any time after admission, the patient, any relative, friend, or the
mental hygiene legal service gives notice to the director in writing of
request for court hearing on the question of need for immediate observa-
tion, care, and treatment, a hearing shall be held as herein provided as
soon as practicable but in any event not more than five days after such
request is received, except that the commencement of such hearing may be
adjourned at the request of the patient. It shall be the duty of the
director upon receiving notice of such request for hearing to forward
forthwith a copy of such notice with a record of the patient to the
supreme court or county court in the county where such hospital is
located. A copy of such notice and record shall also be given the mental
hygiene legal service. The court which receives such notice shall fix
the date of such hearing and cause the patient or other person request-
ing the hearing, the director, the mental hygiene legal service and such
other persons as the court may determine to be advised of such date.
Upon such date, or upon such other date to which the proceeding may be
adjourned, the court shall hear testimony and examine the person alleged
to be mentally ill, if it be deemed advisable in or out of court, and
shall render a decision in writing that there is reasonable cause to
believe that the patient has a mental illness for which immediate inpa-
tient care and treatment in a hospital is appropriate and which is like-
ly to result in serious harm to himself, HERSELF or others. If it be
determined that there is such reasonable cause, the court shall forth-
with issue an order authorizing the retention of such patient for any
such purpose or purposes in the hospital for a period not to exceed
fifteen days from the date of admission. Any such order entered by the
court shall not be deemed to be an adjudication that the patient is
mentally ill, but only a determination that there is reasonable cause to
retain the patient for the purposes of this section.
§ 5. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall
have become a law.