Title X, Public Health

Every severely mentally disabled person shall be eligible for admission to the state mental health services system, and no such person shall be denied services because of race, color or religion, sex, gender identity, or inability to pay. Eligible persons shall include formerly s…

The department may provide services to persons in need of mental health treatment who are not severely mentally disabled and may provide prevention, emergency, information and referral, consultation, education and other services to individuals and organizations without regard to …

Except for emergency treatment or involuntary admissions ordered under RSA 135-C:27-54, all placements of clients in the programs and services in the mental health system shall be voluntary and shall require the documented consent of the client or guardian. Placements shall be ma…

Subject to RSA 135-C:17, any client receiving service or treatment on a voluntary basis may at any time withdraw from the service or treatment or from any specific form of treatment. The commissioner shall adopt rules, pursuant to RSA 541-A, relative to the rights of minors to wi…

If a client admitted to a receiving facility on a voluntary basis informs the facility of his desire to withdraw completely from the facility, the administrator of the facility or his designee may order a mental and physical examination of the client to determine whether the crit…

Any program or facility in the mental health services system may at any time terminate or suspend services to the client when the termination or suspension is in the best interests of the client or when the client cannot benefit from the service. Services may also be terminated o…

There shall be an individual service plan for every client in the mental health services system. The program or facility into which the client was placed shall develop the individual service plan which shall be regularly reviewed and modified if necessary. To the extent feasible,…

I. Notwithstanding RSA 329:26 and RSA 330-A:32, a community mental health center or state facility providing services to seriously or chronically mentally ill clients may disclose information regarding diagnosis, admission to or discharge from a treatment facility, functional ass…

As used in this chapter: I. "Absolute discharge" means the final and complete discharge of a mentally ill patient from any form of treatment by the department. II. "Administrator" means the superintendent, executive director, or other chief administrative officer of any facility …

I. For proceedings under RSA 135-C:27-33, jurisdiction is vested in the district court of the city or town where the person is detained. II. For proceedings under RSA 135-C:34-54, jurisdiction is vested in the probate court in the county where the person sought to be admitted res…

The attorney general or his designee shall represent the state of New Hampshire in proceedings conducted pursuant to this chapter in which the state is an interested party.

The right of a client or a person sought to be admitted to a program or facility to legal counsel prior to and during any judicial hearing conducted under this chapter shall be absolute and unconditional. The right to legal counsel for any client or person sought to be admitted d…

If the client or person sought to be admitted does not have legal counsel in connection with hearings held under this chapter, the court shall appoint an attorney who shall be compensated at a rate as determined by the supreme court. The cost of such court-appointed attorneys, in…

Before any judicial hearing commences, the client or the person sought to be admitted shall be given written and oral notice, in a language he understands, of his right to be represented by legal counsel and to have legal counsel appointed for him if he is indigent.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any person aggrieved by an order or decree of the probate court has a right to a review by the supreme court in the same manner provided for the review of cases heard before the superior court.

I. New Hampshire hospital and any other facility approved by the commissioner shall be designated as receiving facilities for the care, custody, and treatment of persons subject to involuntary admissions. Any community mental health program, hospital, community residence, nursing…

A person shall be eligible for involuntary emergency admission if he is in such mental condition as a result of mental illness to pose a likelihood of danger to himself or others. I. As used in this section "danger to himself" is established by demonstrating that: (a) Within 40 d…

I. The involuntary emergency admission of a person shall be to the state mental health services system under the supervision of the commissioner. The commissioner shall maintain a list of physicians, PAs, and APRNs, as defined in RSA 135-C:2, II-a, who are approved by either a de…

I. Upon completion of an involuntary emergency admission certificate under RSA 135-C:28, a law enforcement officer shall, except as provided in paragraph II, take custody of the person to be admitted and shall immediately deliver such person to the receiving facility identified i…

I. Following completion of an involuntary emergency admission certificate under RSA 135-C:28 and before custody of the person is accepted by a law enforcement officer pursuant to RSA 135-C:29, the certificate may be rescinded and the person who is the subject of the certificate r…

The department shall establish, maintain, implement, and coordinate a system of mental health services under this chapter and a system of developmental services under RSA 171-A. Both systems shall be supervised by the commissioner. At the discretion of the commissioner, the depar…

At the receiving facility, any person sought to be involuntarily admitted for involuntary emergency admission shall be given immediate notice by the facility administrator or his designee in simple language he may understand, and written notice within 12 hours, of the following r…

I. Within 3 days after an involuntary emergency admission, not including Sundays and holidays, and subject to the notice requirements of RSA 135-C:24, there shall be a probable cause hearing in the district court having jurisdiction to determine if there was probable cause for in…

I. If the district court finds that the petitioner has failed to meet the burden specified in RSA 135-C:31, I, all court documents pertaining to the petition, including the physician's, PA's, or APRN's certificate, and the complaint shall be sealed and the involuntary emergency a…

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 and Sundays, unless a subsequent petition for involuntary emergency admission which contains allegations of specific acts or actions w…

I. At any time during the period of involuntary emergency admission the administrator of the receiving facility or designee in such facility shall discharge the person admitted if the administrator decides that the person no longer meets the criteria established by RSA 135-C:27. …

The standard to be used by a court, physician, or psychiatrist in determining whether a person should be admitted to a receiving facility for treatment on an involuntary basis shall be whether the person is in such mental condition as a result of mental illness as to create a pot…

Any responsible person may petition for a hearing relative to the need for admission on an involuntary basis of another person due to mental illness under RSA 135-C:36.

I. The petition for admission on an involuntary basis shall include: (a) The name of the person sought to be admitted and his last known address. (b) The specific acts or actions that the petitioner alleges satisfy RSA 135-C:34. (c) A certificate from a physician, physician assoc…

The probate court judge of original jurisdiction shall, upon receipt of the petition, set a hearing date. The hearing shall be held within 15 days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, from the date of receipt of the petition.

Subsequent to receipt of the petition for involuntary admission, the clerk shall, within 2 days of receipt of the petition, forward 2 copies to the person sought to be admitted with notice to the appropriate receiving facility.

I. The person sought to be admitted for treatment on an involuntary basis shall be at liberty pending the hearing, unless: (a) The person is under the protective custody of the department in accordance with RSA 135-C:27-33; (b) The client has been admitted for voluntary care and …

I. The commissioner shall have charge of the property and concerns of any facility owned by the state which provides, or which may be established to provide, care and treatment to persons who have mental illness or developmental disabilities, including those subject to the except…

Upon receipt of the petition, the court shall order the person sought to be admitted to make himself available for an examination by a psychiatrist designated by the court prior to the date of the hearing. A written report prepared by a psychiatrist shall be filed with the court …

No later than on the day before the hearing, 2 copies of the report prepared pursuant to RSA 135-C:40 shall be made available to the person sought to be admitted and to his or her attorney.

Either party may apply to the court for a continuance of the hearing on a petition for involuntary admission which the court may grant for good cause shown.

I. For hearings held under this chapter, the person sought to be admitted shall have the right to legal counsel, to present evidence on his or her own behalf, to have a closed hearing and a closed file unless he or she requests otherwise, and to cross-examine witnesses. He or she…

In hearings held under this chapter, upon the request of the person sought to be admitted, a change of venue or transfer may be granted at the court's discretion.

I. In hearings held under this chapter, after hearing all the evidence, the court may order the respondent to be released, notwithstanding expert testimony, or it may order the person to submit to some form of treatment other than inpatient treatment on an involuntary basis, whic…

I. In any case in which the petition includes a request for appointment of a guardian, the court shall also determine whether to appoint a guardian over the person for the purpose of providing health care. There shall be a legal presumption of capacity, and the burden of proof sh…

No order made pursuant to RSA 135-C:45 for involuntary admission or any other type of treatment shall be valid for longer than 5 years. For the order to be renewed, another judicial hearing shall be held pursuant to RSA 135-C:34-54.

I. The court issuing an order for treatment, other than inpatient treatment at a receiving facility, shall retain jurisdiction of the case for the duration of the order. At any time during the period of such order, any person may petition the probate court having jurisdiction for…

A receiving facility to which a person is ordered for involuntary admission pursuant to RSA 135-C:34-54 may transfer the person to another receiving facility if the receiving facility to which the person is to be transferred can better provide the degree of security and treatment…

I. When a person has been involuntarily admitted to a receiving facility pursuant to RSA 135-C:34-54, or conditionally discharged pursuant to paragraph IV of this section, the clinical staff of the receiving facility where the person has most recently received treatment may recom…

I. The commissioner may adopt rules, pursuant to RSA 541-A, relative to the requirements for services within the state mental health services system, which shall include those services operated or administered by the department or supported by funds granted by or provided under c…

I. The administrator, or designee, of a receiving facility may grant a conditional discharge under this chapter to any person who consents, by an informed decision, to participate in continuing treatment on an out-patient basis, who agrees to be subject to any rules adopted by th…