Public health authorities also require patients with tuberculosis take their medication to protect the rest of us. Lawsuits brought by the American Civil Liberties Union have changed most states' criteria for outpatient commitment. And the same is true in Canada. Individuals must be classified as being in imminent danger to themselves and others before they can be involuntarily treated either in hospital or the community. Doctors have to dot so many I's and cross so many T's that the Lord himself would have a hard task committing these people.
Society has to realize that schizophrenia, like diabetes and epilepsy, is a medical illness.
It's no one's fault and we do not know the exact cause. But it must be treated. Today, we have the drugs to treat schizophrenia and a range of psychotic symptoms. Others who cannot be controlled by anti-psychotic drugs don't need civil libertarians and lawyers telling us they have their rights. What they need is institutional care.