Louisiana Children’s Code 1465 – Voluntary admissions favored
Terms Used In Louisiana Children's Code 1465
- Habeas corpus: A writ that is usually used to bring a prisoner before the court to determine the legality of his imprisonment. It may also be used to bring a person in custody before the court to give testimony, or to be prosecuted.
- Patient: means any person detained and taken care of as a person with mental illness or person suffering from substance abuse. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
- Substance abuse: means the condition of a person who uses narcotic, stimulant, depressant, soporific, tranquilizing, or hallucinogenic drugs or alcohol to the extent that it renders the person dangerous to himself or others or renders the person gravely disabled. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
- Treatment: means an active effort to accomplish an improvement in the mental condition or behavior of a patient or to prevent deterioration in his condition or behavior. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
- Treatment facility: means any public or private hospital, retreat, institution, mental health center, or facility licensed by the state of Louisiana in which any mentally ill minor or minor suffering from substance abuse is received or detained as a patient except a facility under the control or supervision of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections unless otherwise provided in Title VIII of this Code. See Louisiana Children's Code 1404
- Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.
A. Admitting physicians are encouraged to admit minors with mental illness or minors suffering from substance abuse to treatment facilities on voluntary admission status whenever medically feasible.
B. No director of a treatment facility shall prohibit any minor with mental illness or minor suffering from substance abuse from applying for conversion of involuntary or emergency admission status to voluntary admission status. Any minor patient on an involuntary admission status shall have the right to apply for a writ of habeas corpus in order to have his admission status changed to voluntary status.
C. No employee of a mental health care program or treatment facility, peace officer, or physician shall state to any person that involuntary admission may result if the minor does not voluntarily admit himself to a mental health care program or treatment facility unless the employee, peace officer, or physician is prepared to execute a certificate pursuant to Chapter 7 or a petition pursuant to Chapter 9 of this Title.
Acts 1991, No. 235, §14, eff. Jan. 1, 1992; Acts 2014, No. 811, §33, eff. June 23, 2014.