BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 978

By: Raymond

Public Health

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Currently, relatives and family members are among the individuals a court may permit to transport a detained mental health patient to a mental health facility. There is concern that a relative or other caregiver responsible for such a patient's well-being lacks the professional training, experience, and knowledge needed to safely transport a mental health patient. To address this concern, H.B. 978 seeks to exclude them from the list of authorized transporters.  

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 978 amends the Health and Safety Code to remove a relative or other responsible person who has a proper interest in a patient's welfare and who receives no remuneration, except for actual and necessary expenses, from the list of people who may be authorized by a court to transport to a mental health facility a patient committed to the facility or admitted to the facility for emergency detention.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2013.