Bill No.: SF0019                  Drafter:  JHR

 

LSO No.:  09LSO-0064              Effective Date:  7/1/2009

 

Enrolled Act No.:  SEA0018

 

Chapter No.:       12

 

Prime Sponsor:     Select Committee on Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services

 

Catch Title:       Costs of emergency detention and hospitalization.

 

Subject:  Specifies requirements for hospitals and other treatment providers seeking recovery of costs from patients who have been detained under emergency conditions or involuntarily hospitalized.

 

 

Summary/Major Elements:

 

·         Under current law, hospitals and other treatment providers are required to seek recovery of costs from emergency detainees or involuntarily hospitalized patients and from other governmental benefit programs before they may seek reimbursement of costs from the county that instituted the emergency detention or involuntary hospitalization or from the department of health.  The law does not specify how that duty to seek recovery is discharged before seeking reimbursement from the county or department.

 

·         This bill would clarify that the hospital or other treatment provider has discharged its duty to seek recovery of costs from the patient if it has obtained, or reasonably tried to obtain, an affidavit showing the patient's financial condition to support a certification by the hospital or provider to the county or department that the patient has no health insurance coverage and that there are no other governmental benefit programs from which the hospital or provider can recover costs incurred for the emergency detention or involuntary hospitalization.