BOSTON (WWLP) – A State House committee met today to discuss the status of involuntary commitment and when it is appropriate to implement it in Massachusetts.
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Involuntary treatment is a legal process that forces some with serious mental illness to be hospitalized or put under supervised outpatient treatment regardless of patient consent, and it is used in the Bay State for patients who present an immediate danger to themselves or others, are at risk of harm due to serious disability, or who are not able to make informed decisions for themselves.
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One expert says we need to ensure the Bay State offers appropriate mental health care treatment to ensure those who want care can receive it before the state forces individuals into inadequate care.
“We can’t mandate people to treatment services that don’t exist,” said Stanford University Psychiatry Professor Keith Humphreys.
Although experts generally agree that changes need to be made to the involuntary commitment process, several say the process remains necessary. In some cases, like severe addiction or when there is an immediate danger to others, involuntary treatment may be the only way to help people.
“We’re not just gathering people up here to throw them in a facility to make sure the streets look clean; this is about getting folks the help they need,” said Boston City Councilor John Fitzgerald, who represents Mass and Cass.
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The city councilor pointed to a Ludlow facility as an example of well-run and helpful mental health care.
Proposed Bay State bills to improve the commitment process include one to ensure timely inpatient mental health care, reduce the use of boarding in emergency departments, and divert patients to alternative mental health supports like behavioral urgent care centers.
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[SRC] https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/status-involuntary-commitment-bay-state-225327064.html
