CHAPTER 61
HB 740-FN – FINAL VERSION
02Jan2008… 2626h
23Apr2008… 1423eba
2008 SESSION
01/10
HOUSE BILL 740-FN
AN ACT relative to mental health services.
SPONSORS: Rep. MacKay, Merr 11
COMMITTEE: Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs
This bill makes changes to RSA 135-C to make it consistent with the reorganization of the department of health and human services.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
02Jan2008… 2626h
23Apr2008… 1423eba
07-1053
01/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Eight
AN ACT relative to mental health services.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
61:1 Mental Health Services System; Bureaus Established. RSA 135-C:6 is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:
135-C:6 Bureaus Established; Staffing.
I. There shall be established within the department the bureau of behavioral health services, which shall include, but not be limited to, New Hampshire hospital, Glencliff home, and community mental health services.
II. The commissioner shall appoint a person duly qualified by training and experience to serve as chief executive officer of New Hampshire hospital and perform such duties as are assigned by the commissioner.
III. The commissioner shall appoint a chief operating officer of New Hampshire hospital. Such person shall be, through training and experience, qualified to serve and shall perform such duties as are assigned by the commissioner.
IV. The commissioner may establish one or more positions of unit director and senior physician, psychiatrist, dentist, and director of nursing and shall appoint qualified personnel to these positions. The commissioner may abolish these positions because of a change in organization, lack of work, unappropriated or insufficient funds, or like reasons.
V. The commissioner shall appoint a person duly qualified by training and experience to serve as administrator of the Glencliff home and perform such duties as are assigned by the commissioner.
VI. There shall be established a medical director, who shall be responsible for providing oversight and advice on the clinical services and treatment within the state mental health services system. The commissioner shall appoint or designate a person duly qualified by training and experience to fulfill these responsibilities and to perform such other duties as are assigned by the commissioner.
VII. The annual salary of each person appointed to a position established under this section and his or her right to maintenance shall be in accordance with RSA 94:1-5.
VIII. Each person appointed under this section shall serve subject to the following provisions:
(a) The commissioner may terminate the appointee from the position for either:
(1) Good cause, which shall include, but not be limited to malfeasance, misfeasance, or insubordination; or
(2) The abolition of a position because of a change in organization, lack of work, unappropriated or insufficient funds, or like reasons.
(b) Termination shall be made only after written notice to the appointee stating the reasons for the decision. Within 10 days after receipt of the notice of the termination, the appointee may appeal the termination in writing to the commissioner. Within 20 days of receiving the notice of appeal, the commissioner shall conduct a hearing in accordance with rules adopted under RSA 541-A. Within 10 days after completion of the hearing process, the commissioner shall render a written decision either upholding or reversing the termination. If the commissioner reverses the termination, the appointee shall be reinstated and all pay and benefits lost during the time of the appeals process shall be restored to the appointee.
61:2 New Paragraph; Mental Health Services System; Disclosure of Certain Information. Amend RSA 135-C:19-a by inserting after paragraph II the following new paragraph:
II-a. Notwithstanding RSA 329:26 and RSA 330-A:32, when the medical director, or designee, determines that obtaining information is essential to the care and treatment of a person admitted pursuant to RSA 135-C:27 - RSA 135-C:54 and the consent of the person admitted cannot be obtained, the designated receiving facility may request and any community mental health program which has previously provided services to such person shall immediately provide information about the person including medications prescribed, known medication allergies, services provided and other information essential to the medical and psychiatric care of the person admitted. The facility may disclose information necessary to identify the person and the facility which is requesting the information. No community mental health program which discloses otherwise confidential information to a designated receiving facility following a request made pursuant to this program shall be civilly or criminally liable for disclosing such information.
61:3 Nonemergency Involuntary Admissions; Revocation of Conditional Discharge. Amend RSA 135-C:51 to read as follows:
135-C:51 Revocation of Conditional Discharge.
I. If a psychiatrist or ARNP, as defined in RSA 135-C:2, II-a, at a community mental health program providing continuing treatment on an outpatient basis to a person conditionally discharged pursuant to RSA 135-C:50, reasonably believes that:
(a) The person has violated a condition of the discharge; or
(b) A condition or circumstance exists which may create a potentially serious likelihood of danger to the person or to others, the psychiatrist or ARNP may conduct or cause to be conducted by a treatment team member or an emergency service staff member, an examination of the person to determine if the conditional discharge should be revoked. [The] Before an examination may be conducted [only after the person has been given], a written notice [of] shall be prepared identifying the belief, and the reasons therefor, that a violation of the conditional discharge has occurred or other circumstances or condition exists which may create a potentially serious likelihood of danger to the person or to others. The written notice shall be offered to and read to the person prior to conducting an examination.
II. A reasonable effort shall be made to find the person, in order to offer and read the notice required under paragraph I. If the person [refuses to] cannot be located or consent to an examination [under paragraph I] cannot be obtained, the psychiatrist or other representative of the community mental health program may sign a complaint. Upon issuance of such a complaint, any law enforcement officer shall take custody of the person and immediately deliver him or her to the place specified in the complaint.
III. If the psychiatrist or ARNP, following the examination the psychiatrist or ARNP conducted or caused to be conducted of the person, finds that the person either has violated a condition of the discharge or is in such a mental condition as a result of mental illness as to create a potentially serious likelihood of danger to himself or herself or to others, he or she may temporarily revoke the conditional discharge. If the conditional discharge is temporarily revoked, the psychiatrist, or ARNP, or designee, shall [inform the person affected in writing] prepare, offer to and read to the person a written notice giving the reasons for the revocation and the psychiatrist or ARNP shall identify the receiving facility to which the person is to be delivered.
IV. A law enforcement officer shall take custody of the person whose conditional discharge was temporarily revoked under paragraph III and deliver him or her, together with a copy of the notice and the reasons for the temporary revocation, to the receiving facility identified by the psychiatrist, where he or she shall be personally examined by the administrator of the facility or [his] designee and the reasons for temporary revocation of the discharge shall be reviewed. Following such examination and review, if the administrator of the facility or [his qualified] designee finds that the person conditionally discharged has violated a condition of the discharge or is in such a mental condition as a result of mental illness as to create a potentially serious likelihood of danger to himself or herself or to others, he or she may revoke absolutely the conditional discharge. [He shall provide to such person written notice] The administrator of the facility, or designee, shall prepare, offer to and read to the person a written notice of the reasons for the absolute revocation. The person whose conditional discharge has been absolutely revoked shall be subject to the terms and conditions of the order of involuntary admission made pursuant to RSA 135-C:34-54 from which conditional discharge was granted as if the conditional discharge had not been granted.
61:4 Reference Changes. Amend RSA 21-P:7-c, I to read as follows:
I. All security officers of the hospital security force shall possess such police powers as are granted to them by the commissioner of safety pursuant to RSA 21-P:4, XI. All officers of the hospital security force hired after the effective date of this paragraph shall be required to meet the training standards required generally of police offers by the police standards and training council pursuant to RSA 188-F and in addition shall receive additional training in dealing with persons with mental illness as specified by the commissioner of safety after consultation with the [superintendent] chief executive officer of the New Hampshire hospital.
61:5 Reference Changes. Amend RSA 94:1-a, I(b) as follows:
I. Strike out:
(a) FF New Hampshire hospital assistant superintendent
(b) FF Glencliff home superintendent
(c) GG New Hampshire hospital superintendent
(d) HH Department of health and superintendent
human services
II. Insert:
(a) FF New Hampshire hospital chief operating officer
(b) FF Glencliff home administrator
(c) HH New Hampshire hospital chief executive officer
61:6 Glencliff Home; Reference Change. Amend RSA 94:5, I(c)(1) to read as follows:
(1) [superintendent] administrator;
61:7 Effective Date. This act shall take effect upon its passage.
Approved: May 21, 2008
Effective Date: May 21, 2008