Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB344 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	By: West, et al. S.B. No. 344
2		-	(Sheffield)
	1	+	S.B. No. 344
3	2
4	3
5		-	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	4		AN ACT
7	5		relating to the authority of emergency medical services personnel
8	6		of certain emergency medical services providers to transport a
9	7		person for emergency detention.
10	8		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	9		SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 573, Health and Safety
12	10		Code, is amended by adding Section 573.0001 to read as follows:
13	11		Sec. 573.0001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
14	12		(1) "Emergency medical services personnel" and
15	13		"emergency medical services provider" have the meanings assigned by
16	14		Section 773.003.
17	15		(2) "Law enforcement agency" has the meaning assigned
18	16		by Article 59.01, Code of Criminal Procedure.
19	17		SECTION 2. Section 573.001(d), Health and Safety Code, is
20	18		amended to read as follows:
21	19		(d) A peace officer who takes a person into custody under
22	20		Subsection (a) shall immediately:
23	21		(1) transport the apprehended person to:
24	22		(A) [(1)] the nearest appropriate inpatient
25	23		mental health facility; or
26	24		(B) [(2)] a mental health facility deemed
27	25		suitable by the local mental health authority, if an appropriate
28	26		inpatient mental health facility is not available; or
29	27		(2) transfer the apprehended person to emergency
30	28		medical services personnel of an emergency medical services
31	29		provider in accordance with a memorandum of understanding executed
32	30		under Section 573.005 for transport to a facility described by
33	31		Subdivision (1)(A) or (B).
34	32		SECTION 3. Sections 573.002(a), (d), and (e), Health and
35	33		Safety Code, are amended to read as follows:
36	34		(a) A peace officer shall immediately file with a facility a
37	35		notification of detention after transporting a person to that
38	36		facility in accordance with Section 573.001. Emergency medical
39	37		services personnel of an emergency medical services provider who
40	38		transport a person to a facility at the request of a peace officer
41	39		made in accordance with a memorandum of understanding executed
42	40		under Section 573.005 shall immediately file with the facility the
43	41		notification of detention completed by the peace officer who made
44	42		the request.
45	43		(d) The peace officer shall provide [give] the notification
46	44		of detention on the following form:
47	45		Notification--Emergency Detention NO. ____________________
48	46		DATE:_______________ TIME:_______________
49	47		THE STATE OF TEXAS
50	48		FOR THE BEST INTEREST AND PROTECTION OF:
51	49		______________________________________
52	50		NOTIFICATION OF EMERGENCY DETENTION
53	51		Now comes _____________________________, a peace officer with
54	52		(name of agency) _____________________________, of the State of
55	53		Texas, and states as follows:
56	54		1. I have reason to believe and do believe that (name of person to
57	55		be detained) __________________________ evidences mental illness.
58	56		2. I have reason to believe and do believe that the above-named
59	57		person evidences a substantial risk of serious harm to
60	58		himself/herself or others based upon the following:
61	59		________________________________________________________________
62	60		________________________________________________________________
63	61		________________________________________________________________
64	62		________________________________________________________________
65	63		3. I have reason to believe and do believe that the above risk of
66	64		harm is imminent unless the above-named person is immediately
67	65		restrained.
68	66		4. My beliefs are based upon the following recent behavior, overt
69	67		acts, attempts, statements, or threats observed by me or reliably
70	68		reported to me:
71	69		________________________________________________________________
72	70		________________________________________________________________
73	71		________________________________________________________________
74	72		________________________________________________________________
75	73		5. The names, addresses, and relationship to the above-named
76	74		person of those persons who reported or observed recent behavior,
77	75		acts, attempts, statements, or threats of the above-named person
78	76		are (if applicable):
79	77		________________________________________________________________
80	78		________________________________________________________________
81	79		________________________________________________________________
82	80		________________________________________________________________
83	81		For the above reasons, I present this notification to seek
84	82		temporary admission to the (name of facility)
85	83		_________________________ inpatient mental health facility or
86	84		hospital facility for the detention of (name of person to be
87	85		detained) __________________________ on an emergency basis.
88	86		6. Was the person restrained in any way? Yes □ No □
89	87		_________________________ BADGE NO. _____________________
90	88		PEACE OFFICER'S SIGNATURE
91	89		Address: _________________________ Zip Code: ____________________
92	90		Telephone: ______________________
93	91		_________________________
94	92		SIGNATURE OF EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES PERSONNEL (if applicable)
95	93		Address: _________________________ Zip Code: ____________________
96	94		Telephone: ______________________
97	95		A mental health facility or hospital emergency department may not
98	96		require a peace officer or emergency medical services personnel to
99	97		execute any form other than this form as a predicate to accepting
100	98		for temporary admission a person detained by a peace officer under
101	99		Section 573.001, [Texas] Health and Safety Code, and transported by
102	100		the officer under that section or by emergency medical services
103	101		personnel of an emergency medical services provider at the request
104	102		of the officer made in accordance with a memorandum of
105	103		understanding executed under Section 573.005, Health and Safety
106	104		Code.
107	105		(e) A mental health facility or hospital emergency
108	106		department may not require a peace officer or emergency medical
109	107		services personnel to execute any form other than the form provided
110	108		by Subsection (d) as a predicate to accepting for temporary
111	109		admission a person detained by a peace officer under Section
112	110		573.001 and transported by the officer under that section or by
113	111		emergency medical services personnel of an emergency medical
114	112		services provider at the request of the officer made in accordance
115	113		with a memorandum of understanding executed under Section 573.005.
116	114		SECTION 4. Subchapter A, Chapter 573, Health and Safety
117	115		Code, is amended by adding Section 573.005 to read as follows:
118	116		Sec. 573.005. TRANSPORTATION FOR EMERGENCY DETENTION BY
119	117		EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES PROVIDER; MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING.
120	118		(a) A law enforcement agency and an emergency medical services
121	119		provider may execute a memorandum of understanding under which
122	120		emergency medical services personnel employed by the provider may
123	121		transport a person taken into custody under Section 573.001 by a
124	122		peace officer employed by the law enforcement agency.
125	123		(b) A memorandum of understanding must:
126	124		(1) address responsibility for the cost of
127	125		transporting the person taken into custody; and
128	126		(2) be approved by the county in which the law
129	127		enforcement agency is located and the local mental health authority
130	128		that provides services in that county with respect to provisions of
131	129		the memorandum that address the responsibility for the cost of
132	130		transporting the person.
133	131		(c) A peace officer may request that emergency medical
134	132		services personnel transport a person taken into custody by the
135	133		officer under Section 573.001 only if:
136	134		(1) the law enforcement agency that employs the
137	135		officer and the emergency medical services provider that employs
138	136		the personnel have executed a memorandum of understanding under
139	137		this section; and
140	138		(2) the officer determines that transferring the
141	139		person for transport is safe for both the person and the personnel.
142	140		(d) Emergency medical services personnel may, at the
143	141		request of a peace officer, transport a person taken into custody by
144	142		the officer under Section 573.001 to the appropriate facility, as
145	143		provided by that section, if the law enforcement agency that
146	144		employs the officer and the emergency medical services provider
147	145		that employs the personnel have executed a memorandum of
148	146		understanding under this section.
149	147		(e) A peace officer who transfers a person to emergency
150	148		medical services personnel under a memorandum of understanding
151	149		executed under this section for transport to the appropriate
152	150		facility must provide:
153	151		(1) to the person the notice described by Section
154	152		573.001(g); and
155	153		(2) to the personnel a completed notification of
156	154		detention about the person on the form provided by Section
157	155		573.002(d).
158	156		SECTION 5. Section 573.021(a), Health and Safety Code, is
159	157		amended to read as follows:
160	158		(a) A facility shall temporarily accept a person for whom an
161	159		application for detention is filed or for whom a peace officer or
162	160		emergency medical services personnel of an emergency medical
163	161		services provider transporting the person in accordance with a
164	162		memorandum of understanding executed under Section 573.005 files a
165	163		notification of detention completed by the peace officer under
166	164		Section 573.002(a).
167	165		SECTION 6. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
168	166		a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
169	167		provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
170	168		Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
171	169		Act takes effect September 1, 2017.
	170	+	______________________________ ______________________________
	171	+	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
	172	+	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 344 passed the Senate on
	173	+	April 19, 2017, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
	174	+	______________________________
	175	+	Secretary of the Senate
	176	+	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 344 passed the House on
	177	+	May 24, 2017, by the following vote: Yeas 146, Nays 0, two
	178	+	present not voting.
	179	+	______________________________
	180	+	Chief Clerk of the House
	181	+	Approved:
	182	+	______________________________
	183	+	Date
	184	+	______________________________
	185	+	Governor