87R7434 MAW-F
By: Eckhardt S.B. No. 944
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the administration of medication to certain persons in
the custody of a sheriff.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Article 46B.0825, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended by adding Subsections (a-1) and (a-2) and amending
Subsection (b) to read as follows:
(a-1) If a defendant described by Subsection (a) is being
treated with a psychotropic medication at the time the defendant is
discharged from the facility and transferred into the sheriff's
custody, the sheriff or sheriff's deputy shall ensure that
administration of the medication continues unless directed
otherwise by the physician for the jail, subject to Subsection
(a-2). The jail physician must appropriately document the need for
any discontinuation or other change in the use or amount of
medication after consulting with the physician who treated the
defendant at the facility to ensure that the change does not
adversely affect the defendant's mental health or ability to
continue with court proceedings.
(a-2) The physician for a jail may not discontinue or
otherwise change a psychotropic medication that is being used in
the treatment of a defendant described by Subsection (a) at the time
of the defendant's discharge from the facility unless the jail
physician determines there is a compelling medical reason to make
the change for the health and safety of the defendant. If the jail
physician discontinues or otherwise changes the use or amount of
medication and the defendant is subsequently found incompetent to
stand trial, recommitted to a facility, and then discharged again
into the custody of the sheriff following that recommittal, the
jail physician may not discontinue or change the defendant's
prescribed psychotropic medication after the discharge from the
facility without the consent of the physician who treated the
defendant at the facility.
(b) To the extent funds are appropriated for that purpose, a
sheriff is entitled to reimbursement from the state for providing
the medication required by this article [Subsection (a)].
SECTION 2. Section 511.009(d), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(d) The commission shall adopt reasonable rules and
procedures establishing minimum standards regarding the continuity
of prescription medications for the care and treatment of
prisoners. The rules and procedures shall require that:
(1) a qualified medical professional shall review as
soon as possible any prescription medication a prisoner is taking
when the prisoner is taken into custody; and
(2) a prisoner with a mental illness be provided with
each prescription medication that a qualified medical professional
or mental health professional determines is necessary for the care,
treatment, or stabilization of the prisoner.
SECTION 3. Article 46B.0825(c), Code of Criminal Procedure,
is repealed.
SECTION 4. Not later than December 1, 2021, the Commission
on Jail Standards shall adopt the rules and procedures required by
Section 511.009(d), Government Code, as amended by this Act.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.