General Assembly>Division of Legislative Services>Publications>Session Summaries>2007>Institutions for the Mentally Ill; Mental Health Generally


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Institutions for the Mentally Ill; Mental Health Generally

Passed

P HB 2036

Involuntary admission hearings; examination providers. Adds community service boards and behavioral health authorities to the list of facilities by which an examiner may be employed.
Patron - Hamilton

P HB 2671

Sexually violent predators; civil commitment. Adds the following as sexually violent offenses which qualify a prisoner or incompetent defendant to be evaluated for civil commitment: capital murder in the commission of, or subsequent to a rape or attempted rape, sodomy or forcible sodomy or object sexual penetration, capital murder in the commission of an abduction committed with intent to defile the victim, and first and second degree murder when the killing was in the commission of, or attempt to commit rape, forcible sodomy, or object sexual penetration. The bill also provides that certain provisions regarding the identification, and assessment for filing a petition for commitment are procedural and not substantive or jurisdictional, and that absent gross negligence or willful misconduct it shall be presumed that there has been substantial compliance with the provisions. Allows the CRC 120 instead of 90 days after receiving the name of an individual eligible to be evaluated for civil commitment to complete its assessment and submit its recommendation to the Attorney General and revises the CRC's criteria for assessment and provides that a quorum is four members rather than five members. The bill grants access to a variety of records to the Department of Mental Health, the CRC, and the Department of Corrections and provides that the existence of prior convictions or charges may be shown with affidavits or documentary evidence at the probable cause hearing.
Patron - Griffith

P HB 2678

Opiate addiction treatment center; closed on Sunday. Provides that no provider of treatment for persons with opiate addiction through the use of methadone or other opioid replacements shall be required to conduct, maintain or operate services for the treatment of persons with opiate addiction through the use of methadone or other opioid replacements on Sunday except when such service is provided by a hospital licensed by the Board of Health or the Commissioner or is owned or operated by an agency of the Commonwealth. Requires that the Department of Health shall develop guidelines or regulations to ensure the appropriate health, welfare and safety of consumers and the security of take-home doses.
Patron - Ware, O.

P HB 2955

Mental health; temporary detention orders. Requires a magistrate issuing a temporary detention order to consider the recommendations of any treating or examining physician licensed in Virginia, if available, prior to rendering a decision.
Patron - Bell

P HB 2962

Life-sharing communities. Defines a life-sharing community as a residential setting with therapeutic activities for persons with developmental disabilities and establishes criteria for the licensing and inspection of such communities by the Department of Social Services.
Patron - Bell

P HB 3177

Conservator; requirements for sale of real estate. Provides that, prior to the conveyance of real estate, the court may require that a conservator of a person deemed incapacitated use a common source information company, as defined in § 54.1-2130, when listing the property for sale.
Patron - Ebbin

P SB 890

Involuntary mental health commitment; custody orders. Allows an emergency or temporary custody order to include transportation to a medical facility for a medical evaluation if required by a physician at the hospital to which the person is being transported.
Patron - Deeds

P SB 1186

Community services board members; terms of office. Authorizes the governing body of a city or county to reappoint a member of a community services board after a three-year period has elapsed since the end of the member's last three-year term.
Patron - Blevins

P SB 1203

Sexually violent predators; civil commitment. Provides that the Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services and the Attorney General's Office shall examine, as possible components of conditional release of civilly committed sexual violent predators, the feasibility of the use of physical castration as a treatment option and the use of residential housing facilities, operated by the Commonwealth or by private providers contracted with the Commonwealth on property owned by the Commonwealth, and shall report the results of the examination to the Governor and the General Assembly by December 1, 2008.
Patron - Hanger

Failed

F HB 1633

Providers of mental health, mental retardation, and substance abuse services; retaliatory actions. Prohibits a group home or residential facility licensed or funded by the Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services from retaliating or discriminating against any person who in good faith complains or provides information to or cooperates with the Department, or reports a violation that adversely affects the human rights of consumers or poses an imminent and substantial threat to the health, safety, or welfare of consumers.
Patron - Morgan

F HB 1792

Civil commitment of sexually violent predators; bestiality. Provides that a conviction for carnally knowing a brute animal qualifies a person as a sexually violent predator eligible to be evaluated for civil commitment.
Patron - Griffith

F HB 1904

Mental health; outpatient treatment orders. Changes the first criterion for outpatient treatment orders to include failure to properly take medication that has been previously prescribed, when such failure will likely cause the person to present an imminent danger to himself or others, or to be so seriously mentally ill as to be substantially unable to care for himself.
Patron - Albo

F HB 2474

Involuntary commitment; transportation. Provides that if the law-enforcement agency designated in a temporary detention order to provide transportation is a town agency and there is no town officer reasonably available to transport the person, the magistrate shall specify in the order that the county police department or sheriff provide the transportation.
Patron - Crockett-Stark

F HB 2636

DMHMRSAS; pilot program for older adults with mental illness; report. Requires the Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services to develop a two-year pilot program to provide specialized services for older adults (age 65 and older) who have serious mental illness. The bill sets forth program requirements and objectives, and includes evaluation criteria. The bill requires both interim and final reports.
Patron - Watts

F HB 2672

Sexually violent predators; civil commitment. Provides that any prisoner convicted of a sexually violent offense will be referred to the Commitment Review Committee to be evaluated for civil commitment if he scores a minimum of four on the Static-99. Under current law, prisoners convicted of certain offenses (statutory rape, sodomy or object sexual penetration with child under age 13, and aggravated sexual battery with child under age 13 who suffered physical injury) are referred with a score of four, and the remainder are referred with a five. The bill also provides that certain provisions regarding the identification, review, and preparation for filing a petition for commitment are procedural and not substantive or jurisdictional and that absent gross negligence or willful misconduct, failure to comply is not a basis upon which a court can deny civil commitment or conditional release.
Patron - Griffith

F HB 2721

Background checks; providers licensed by DMHMRSAS. Allows a provider licensed by the Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services to hire for compensation a person who has been convicted of not more than one offense of assault and battery of a police officer under § 18.2-57, or an equivalent offense in another state, if (i) more than five years have elapsed since the conviction and (ii) the hiring provider determines, based upon a screening assessment, that the criminal behavior was substantially related to the applicant's substance abuse and that the person has been successfully rehabilitated and is not a risk to consumers based on his criminal background check and his substance abuse history.
Patron - Carrico

F SB 763

Mental health; outpatient treatment orders. Changes the criteria for ordering outpatient mental health treatment rather than involuntary inpatient treatment. Strikes the requirement that a person be found to be a danger to himself or others and instead requires a finding that assisted outpatient treatment will be sufficient to prevent him from harming himself or others.
Patron - Cuccinelli

F SB 780

Involuntary temporary detention; issuance and execution of order. Modifies one element of the legal standard for involuntary commitment by changing the requirement that individuals present an "imminent danger" to a requirement that individuals present a "significant risk." Emphasizes criteria required for involuntary commitment as found in prior records of treatment and noncompliance with treatment, and demonstrated in reports of witnesses, family members, physicians, or mental health professionals.
Patron - Cuccinelli

F SB 808

Mental health; assisted outpatient treatment. Establishes a program of assisted outpatient treatment for the severely mentally ill. The bill authorizes assisted outpatient treatment only for persons previously hospitalized due to noncompliance with prescribed psychiatric treatment. The bill requires that a specific written treatment plan be prepared by the community services board that gives consideration to the treatment preferences of the individual and explicitly bars the forcible administration of medication. The bill also authorizes law-enforcement personnel to transport the individual to a treatment facility for evaluation by a treatment provider and to ensure compliance with the treatment order only when the individual has substantially failed to comply with the treatment plan without good cause, and only for a 48-hour period, including transportation time. The bill limits the duration of the court order to 180 days or less, and provides the person with procedural protections, including the right to an adversary hearing, the right to counsel, the right to an appeal, and the right to a jury trial on appeal.
Patron - Marsh

F SB 856

Background checks; providers licensed by DMHMRSAS. Allows a provider licensed by the Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services to hire for compensation a person who has been convicted of not more than one offense of assault and battery of a police officer under § 18.2-57, or an equivalent offense in another state, if (i) more than five years have elapsed since the conviction, (ii) the hiring provider determines, based upon a screening assessment, that the criminal behavior was substantially related to the applicant's substance abuse and that the person has been successfully rehabilitated and is not a risk to consumers based on his criminal history background and his substance abuse history, and (iii) the law-enforcement agency employing the officer provides a supporting statement relating to the conviction.
Patron - Reynolds

F SB 981

Involuntary commitment; transportation. Provides that if the law-enforcement agency designated in a temporary detention order to provide transportation is a town agency and there is no town officer reasonably available to transport the person the magistrate shall specify in the order that the county police department or sheriff provide the transportation.
Patron - Edwards

F SB 996

Review of application for federal funds or services used in substance abuse programs. Exempts applications by local governments for federal funding or services used in substance abuse programs from certain administrative requirements.
Patron - Blevins

F SB 1052

Emergency custody order; issuance and execution. Authorizes sheriffs and sheriffs' deputies to execute emergency custody orders.
Patron - Edwards

F SB 1347

Guardian ad litem; evaluation for appointment. Provides that the subject of a petition for appointment of a guardian ad litem must be examined by a physician or psychologist before a guardian is appointed.
Patron - Ruff

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General Assembly>Division of Legislative Services>Publications>Session Summaries>2007>Institutions for the Mentally Ill; Mental Health Generally

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