Title 7, Human Health Care and Safety.

(a) There is established within the Department, in partnership with UDC, a nurse training program, which shall offer tuition reimbursement for courses at UDC for a licensed practical nurse employed by Saint Elizabeths Hospital to become a registered nurse or for a registered nurs…

(a) There is established as a nonlapsing fund the Department of Mental Health Enterprise Fund (“Fund”) into which shall be deposited all fees, proceeds, and revenues collected from the activities and operations of a food cafeteria managed and operated by the Department of Mental …

For the purposes of this chapter, the term: (1) “Behavioral health” means a person’s overall social, emotional, and psychological well-being and development. (2) “Behavioral health services” means stand-alone and co-occurring, integrated treatment services for substance abuse and…

(a) There is established as a separate, cabinet-level Department, subordinate to the Mayor, the Department of Behavioral Health. (b) The Department shall be the successor-in-interest to the Department of Mental Health, established by Chapter 11A of this title [§ 7-1131.01 et seq.…

The Department shall be headed by a Director, who shall: (1) Be appointed by the Mayor with the advice and consent of the Council, pursuant to § 1-523.01(a); (2) Be qualified by experience and training to carry out the purposes of the Department as set forth in § 7-1141.05; and (…

In addition to other duties as may be lawfully imposed, the Director shall: (1) Supervise and direct the Department; (2) Organize the Department for its efficient operation, including creating offices within the Department, as necessary; and (3) Exercise any other powers necessar…

The Department shall: (1) Ensure the provision of high-quality behavioral health services by establishing District-wide behavioral health standards and policies; (2) Foster and promote behavioral health education and disease prevention; (3) Provide high-quality prevention, treatm…

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Department shall: (a)(1) Plan, develop, coordinate, and monitor comprehensive and integrated behavioral health systems of care for adults and for children, youth, and their families in the District, so as to maximize utilization of …

(a) By October 1, 2024, the Department shall contract with a non-governmental organization for the purpose of establishing and operating a mental-health urgent-care clinic in Fiscal Years 2025 and 2026. The clinic shall be located within the Moultrie Courthouse, at 500 Indiana Av…

(a) By October 31, 2024, the Department shall award a contract of $300,000 to a non-governmental organization for the purpose of conducting a needs assessment aimed at better understanding how problem gambling is impacting the District's residents and developing strategies for es…

(a)(1) The Department shall, in collaboration with relevant stakeholders, including healthcare professionals, legal experts, and community-based organizations, develop a detailed online training module for healthcare professionals of varying disciplines and levels of expertise on…

(a)(1) By October 1, 2026, the Department shall award one-year contracts with 2 non-governmental organizations for the purpose of operating crisis stabilization beds and crisis stabilization services. (2) Crisis stabilization services shall: (A) Operate in a manner that is volunt…

(a)(1) There is established, within the Department, the Children and Adolescent Mobile Psychiatric Services program ("ChAMPS") to provide children and youth aged 6 to 24 experiencing behavioral health crises with behavioral health services. (2) By October 1, 2026, the Department …

(a) The following powers, duties, functions, and responsibilities are hereby transferred to the Department of Behavioral Health, effective October 1, 2013: (1) All real and personal property, Career and Excepted Service, Management Supervisory Service, trainee positions, assets, …

(a) All rulemaking and regulations for the administration of the District’s public mental health system and the addiction, recovery, and prevention system, issued under appropriate authority, shall continue in full force and effect until otherwise superseded. (b)(1) Any amendment…

(a) To the extent any provision of Chapter 11A of this title [§ 7-1131.01 et seq.], is inconsistent with a provision of this chapter, the provision of this chapter shall govern and shall be deemed to supersede the inconsistent provision. (b) The Department of Health Addiction Pre…

(a) For the purposes of this subchapter, the term: (1) "Direct support" means behavioral health crises assessment and intervention services. (2) "High-need area" means a defined geographic area, which may include a neighborhood, corridor, or cluster of blocks, designated by the D…

*NOTE: This section includes amendments by emergency legislation that will expire on January 18, 2027. To view the text of this section after the expiration of all emergency and temporary legislation, click this link: Permanent Version.* (a) There is established, within the Depar…

No later than 30 days before the first day of a fiscal year, the Department of Mental Health shall issue to each certified Mental Health Rehabilitation Services provider a statement of anticipated annual funding. The statement shall include language that the anticipated funding l…

For purposes of this chapter: (1) “Administrative information” means a client’s name, age, sex, address, identifying number or numbers, dates and character of sessions (individual or group), and fees. (2) “Client” means any individual who receives or has received professional ser…

(a) Except as specifically authorized by subchapter II, III, or IV of this chapter, no mental health professional, mental health facility, data collector or employee or agent of a mental health professional, mental health facility or data collector shall disclose or permit the di…

If a mental health professional makes personal notes regarding a client, such personal notes shall not be maintained as a part of the client’s record of mental health information. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, access to such personal notes shall be strictly…

(a) Upon disclosure of any of the client’s mental health information pursuant to subchapter II, III, or IV of this chapter, a notation shall be entered and maintained with the client’s record of mental health information which includes: (1) The date of the disclosure; (2) The nam…

Except as provided in § 7-1202.06, a mental health professional, mental health facility, data collector or employee or agent of a mental health professional, mental health facility or data collector shall disclose mental health information and a client in a group session may disc…

(a) Any written authorization which authorizes disclosure pursuant to § 7-1202.01 shall: (1) Specify the nature of the information to be disclosed, the type of persons authorized to disclose such information, to whom the information may be disclosed and the specific purposes for …

Mental health information disclosed pursuant to this subchapter cannot be further disclosed by the recipient without authorization as provided in § 7-1202.01.

Except as provided in § 7-1202.02(a)(3), the person or persons who authorize a disclosure may revoke an authorization by providing a written revocation to the recipient named in the authorization and to the mental health professional, mental health facility or data collector auth…

(a) When a client is 18 years of age or over, the client or client representative shall have the power to authorize disclosures. (b) When a client is under the age of 18, but beyond the age of 14, disclosures which require authorization may only be authorized by the joint written…

(a) The mental health professional primarily responsible for the diagnosis or treatment of a client may refuse to disclose or limit disclosure of the client’s mental health information even though such mental health information is disclosable by virtue of a valid authorization; p…

(a) A mental health professional or mental health facility may disclose to a 3rd-party payor mental health information necessary to determine the client’s entitlement to, or the amount of, payment benefits for professional services rendered; provided, that the disclosure is pursu…

(a) Mental health information may be disclosed to other individuals employed at the individual mental health facility when and to the extent necessary to facilitate the delivery of professional services to the client. (b) Subject to subsection (c) of this section, a health care p…

Mental health information may be disclosed by a mental health professional or mental health facility where necessary and, to the extent necessary: (1) To meet the requirements of § 21-586 (concerning financial responsibility for the care of hospitalized persons); (2) To meet the …

(a) To the extent the disclosure of mental health information is not otherwise authorized by this chapter, mental health information may be disclosed, on an emergency basis, to one or more of the following if the mental health professional reasonably believes that such disclosure…

(a) A mental health professional or mental health facility may disclose the administrative information necessary for the collection of his or its fee from the client to a person authorized by the mental health professional or mental health facility for the collection of a fee fro…

In addition to the disclosures authorized pursuant to Chapter 2B of this title [§ 7-241 et seq.], a mental health professional or mental health facility may disclose mental health information to qualified personnel, if necessary, for the purpose of conducting scientific research …

(a) A mental health professional or mental health facility may disclose to a correctional institution or a law enforcement official having lawful custody of an individual mental health information about the individual to facilitate the delivery of mental health services and menta…

Mental health information disclosed pursuant to this subchapter shall not be redisclosed except as specifically authorized by subchapter II, III or IV of this chapter or for the purposes of and in accordance with Chapter 2B of this title [§ 7-241 et seq.].

Except as provided elsewhere by law, mental health information acquired by a mental health professional pursuant to a court-ordered examination may be disclosed in a manner provided by rules of court or by order of the court.

(a) Mental health information may be disclosed by a mental health professional when and to the extent necessary to: (1) Initiate or seek civil commitment proceedings under § 21-541; or (2) Request an extreme risk protection order under subchapter X of Chapter 25 of this title.

(a) Mental health information may be disclosed in a civil or administrative proceeding in which the client or the client representative or, in the case of a deceased client, any party claiming or defending through or a beneficiary of the client, initiates his mental or emotional …

Redisclosure of any mental health information disclosed pursuant to this subchapter shall be governed by order of the court or, if no order is issued, by the rules of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.

A client, client representative or any other party in a civil, criminal or administrative action, in which mental health information has been or will be disclosed, shall have the right to move the court to denominate, style or caption the names of all parties as “John Doe” or oth…

Except as provided in this subchapter and in § 7-1201.03, a mental health professional, mental health facility or data collector shall permit any client or client representative, upon written request, to inspect and duplicate the client’s record of mental health information maint…

A mental health professional or mental health facility may limit the disclosure of portions of a client’s record of mental health information to the client or client representative only if the mental health professional primarily responsible for the diagnosis or treatment of such…

In the event that disclosure of the client’s information is limited, the client or client representative may designate an independent mental health professional who shall be in substantially the same or greater professional class as the mental health professional who initially li…

A client or client representative who has taken action in accordance with this subchapter may institute an action in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia to compel access to all or any part of the client’s record of mental health information which was denied by the ment…