Revision: Dec. 10, 2009, midnight
HB 1133 – AS INTRODUCED
2010 SESSION
01/09
HOUSE BILL 1133
AN ACT relative to the duration of involuntary emergency admissions.
SPONSORS: Rep. Shurtleff, Merr 10
This bill clarifies the duration of involuntary emergency admissions.
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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Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
10-2057
01/09
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Ten
AN ACT relative to the duration of involuntary emergency admissions.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Involuntary Emergency Admissions; Notice. Amend RSA 135-C:30, V to read as follows:
V. That involuntary emergency admission cannot exceed a period of 10 days, not including Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, unless the period is extended pursuant to RSA 135-C:32.
2 Involuntary Emergency Admissions; Hearing. Amend RSA 135-C:31, II and III to read as follows:
II. The person sought to be admitted or the petitioner may request a continuance of the probable cause hearing. Such requests shall be granted only for good cause but in no case shall continuance be granted for more than 2 days. Any continuance granted for good cause shall not extend the [10-day] period of involuntary emergency admission.
III. The person sought to be admitted may, in writing, waive the probable cause hearing required under this section. Such waiver shall state that the person sought to be admitted has made an informed decision to waive the probable cause hearing and that he or she understands that such a waiver shall result in his or her admission on an emergency basis for a period not to exceed 10 days, not including Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, except as specified in RSA 135-C:32. The waiver shall be executed before a justice of any district or municipal court. If the person sought to be admitted is found by the court to be incapable of making an informed decision to waive probable cause, then the waiver may be executed by that person’s attorney subject to the review of the court.
3 Period of Involuntary Emergency Admission. Amend RSA 135-C:32 to read as follows:
135-C:32 Ten-Day Limitation; Petition for Involuntary Admission. No person shall be admitted for an involuntary emergency admission under RSA 135-C:27-33 for longer than a 10-day period, not including Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, unless a subsequent petition for involuntary emergency admission which contains allegations of specific acts or actions which occurred subsequent to the initial involuntary emergency admission is completed and the admission is ordered by a physician or A.P.R.N., as defined in RSA 135-C:2, II-a, in accordance with RSA 135-C:28, or unless a petition requesting a judicial hearing on the issue of involuntary admission under RSA 135-C:34-54 has been filed with the appropriate probate court within the involuntary admission period. Upon the filing of the petition with the probate court, the period of involuntary emergency admission may be extended until the issuance of the order of the probate court pursuant to RSA 135-C:45.
4 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.