Sponsored by:
Senator STEVEN V. OROHO
District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)
Senator LINDA R. GREENSTEIN
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
SYNOPSIS
Requires children’s psychiatric facilities to have on-site staff members supervise patients 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning children’s psychiatric facilities and supplementing Title 9 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Notwithstanding any provisions of law to the contrary, a children’s psychiatric facility shall provide daily care to and supervision of the children receiving treatment at the facility, and the agency administrator or home, program, or facility director shall designate staff members to provide continuous, on-site supervision of the children 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
b. As used in this section, “children’s psychiatric facility” means a children’s crisis intervention services, children’s partial care program, psychiatric community home for children, psychiatric residential treatment facility, residential child care facility, or other out-of-home mental health treatment setting as defined in N.J.A.C.10:191-2.
2. The Department of Children and Families, pursuant to the “Administrative Procedures Act,” P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), shall adopt rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of this act.
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill requires a children’s psychiatric facility to provide daily care to and supervision of the children receiving treatment at the facility, and the agency administrator or home, program, or facility director is to designate staff members to be available and on-site 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
As used in the bill, “children’s psychiatric facility” means a children’s crisis intervention services, children’s partial care program, psychiatric community home for children, psychiatric residential treatment facility, residential child care facility, or other out-of-home mental health treatment settings as defined in N.J.A.C.10:191-2.
Children’s group homes and juvenile detention centers are required to ensure that staff members are available and on-site 24 hours a day, seven days a week to provide continuous supervision of the children in such homes and centers. This bill would mandate that children’s psychiatric facilities adopt the same staffing requirements as children’s group homes and juvenile detention centers.