1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to civil law; civil commitment; providing for 
  1.3             notice to certain relatives of patients receiving or 
  1.4             hospitalized for psychiatric or mental health care; 
  1.5             modifying consent provisions for voluntary mental 
  1.6             health treatment for certain minors; amending 
  1.7             Minnesota Statutes 1999 Supplement, section 253B.04, 
  1.8             subdivision 1; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.9             Minnesota Statutes, chapter 144. 
  1.10  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.11     Section 1.  [144.334] [RIGHT TO REQUEST PATIENT 
  1.12  INFORMATION.] 
  1.13     Upon an oral or written request by a spouse, parent, child, 
  1.14  or sibling for information about a patient who is being 
  1.15  evaluated for or diagnosed with mental illness, a provider must 
  1.16  notify the requesting individual of the right under section 
  1.17  144.335, subdivision 3a, paragraph (f), to have the provider 
  1.18  request the patient's authorization to release information about 
  1.19  the patient to a designated individual. 
  1.20     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1999 Supplement, section 
  1.21  253B.04, subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  1.22     Subdivision 1.  [VOLUNTARY ADMISSION AND TREATMENT.] (a) 
  1.23  Voluntary admission is preferred over involuntary commitment and 
  1.24  treatment.  Any person 16 years of age or older may request to 
  1.25  be admitted to a treatment facility as a voluntary patient for 
  1.26  observation, evaluation, diagnosis, care and treatment without 
  1.27  making formal written application.  Any person under the age of 
  2.1   16 years may be admitted as a patient with the consent of a 
  2.2   parent or legal guardian if it is determined by independent 
  2.3   examination that there is reasonable evidence that (1) the 
  2.4   proposed patient is mentally ill has a mental illness, or is 
  2.5   mentally retarded, or chemically dependent; and (2) the proposed 
  2.6   patient is suitable for treatment.  The head of the treatment 
  2.7   facility shall not arbitrarily refuse any person seeking 
  2.8   admission as a voluntary patient. 
  2.9      (b) In addition to the consent provisions of paragraph (a), 
  2.10  a person who is 16 or 17 years of age who refuses to consent 
  2.11  personally to admission may be admitted as a patient for mental 
  2.12  illness or chemical dependency treatment with the consent of a 
  2.13  parent or legal guardian if it is determined by an independent 
  2.14  examination that there is reasonable evidence that the proposed 
  2.15  patient is chemically dependent or has a mental illness and is 
  2.16  suitable for treatment.  The person conducting the examination 
  2.17  shall notify the proposed patient and the parent or legal 
  2.18  guardian of this determination.