California Penal Code 6048 – Commencing July 1, 2024, the board shall develop and adopt …
Commencing July 1, 2024, the board shall develop and adopt regulations setting minimum standards for mental health care at local correctional facilities that meet or exceed the standards for health services in jails established by the National Commission on Correctional Health Care, as follows:
(a) Safety checks of incarcerated persons shall be sufficiently detailed to determine the safety and well-being of the incarcerated person, and that they are not in distress. This determination shall not require facility staff to disturb or wake incarcerated persons during sleeping hours.
Terms Used In California Penal Code 6048
- county: includes "city and county". See California Penal Code 7
- person: includes a corporation as well as a natural person. See California Penal Code 7
- qualified mental health care professional: means a physician, physician assistant, nurse, nurse practitioner, psychologist licensed by the Board of Psychology, registered psychologist, postdoctoral psychological assistant, postdoctoral psychology trainee employed in an exempt setting pursuant to §. See California Penal Code 6048.5
- state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories, and the words "United States" may include the district and territories. See California Penal Code 7
(b) Correctional officers shall be certified in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and shall be required, when safe and appropriate to do so, to begin CPR on a nonresponsive person without obtaining approval from supervisors or medical staff.
(c) Jail supervisors shall be required to conduct random audits of safety checks which shall include a review of logs and video footage, if available, to ensure that safety checks are properly performed.
(d) In-service training of correctional officers shall include no fewer than four hours of training on mental and behavioral health annually. Training requirements prescribed in this subdivision shall be developed by Board of State and Community Corrections standards of training for corrections.
(e) Mental health screening or evaluation conducted at booking or intake shall be conducted by a qualified mental health care professional, if available. Mental health screening or evaluation that is conducted by anybody other than a qualified mental health care professional shall be reviewed by a qualified mental health care professional as soon as reasonably practicable.
(f) Jail staff shall review the medical and mental health history and the county electronic health record, if available, of any person booked or transferred into the jail to determine any history of mental health issues.
(Added by Stats. 2023, Ch. 298, Sec. 3. (AB 268) Effective January 1, 2024.)