2023 New York Laws › MHY - Mental Hygiene › Title B - Mental Health Act › Article 9 - Hospitalization of Persons With a Mental Illness › 9.37 - Involuntary Admission on Certificate of a Director of Community Services or His Designee.

§ 9.37 Involuntary  admission  on certificate of a director of community
services or his designee.
* (a) The director of a hospital, upon application by  a  director  of
community  services  or an examining physician duly designated by him or
her, may receive and care for in such hospital as a patient  any  person
who,  in  the  opinion  of  the  director  of  community services or the
director's designee, has a mental illness for which immediate  inpatient
care  and  treatment in a hospital is appropriate and which is likely to
result in serious harm to himself or herself or others.
The need for immediate hospitalization shall be confirmed by  a  staff
physician  of the hospital prior to admission. Within seventy-two hours,
excluding Sunday and holidays, after such admission, if such patient  is
to  be  retained  for  care and treatment beyond such time and he or she
does not agree to remain in such hospital as a  voluntary  patient,  the
certificate  of  another  examining  physician  who  is  a member of the
psychiatric staff of the  hospital  that  the  patient  is  in  need  of
involuntary  care  and  treatment shall be filed with the hospital. From
the time of his or her admission under this  section  the  retention  of
such  patient  for care and treatment shall be subject to the provisions
for  notice,  hearing,  review,  and  judicial  approval  of   continued
retention  or  transfer and continued retention provided by this article
for the admission and retention of involuntary patients, provided  that,
for  the  purposes  of  such  provisions,  the  date of admission of the
patient shall be deemed to be  the  date  when  the  patient  was  first
received in the hospital under this section.
* NB Effective until July 1, 2027
* (a)  The  director  of a hospital, upon application by a director of
community services or an examining physician duly designated by him, may
receive and care for in such hospital as a patient any  person  who,  in
the opinion of the director of community services or his designee, has a
mental  illness  for  which  immediate inpatient care and treatment in a
hospital is appropriate and which is likely to result in serious harm to
himself or others; "likelihood of serious harm" shall mean:
1. substantial risk of physical  harm  to  himself  as  manifested  by
threats  of  or  attempts  at  suicide  or  serious bodily harm or other
conduct demonstrating that he is dangerous to himself, or
2. a substantial risk of physical harm to other persons as  manifested
by  homicidal  or  other  violent behavior by which others are placed in
reasonable fear or serious physical harm.
The need for immediate hospitalization shall be confirmed by  a  staff
physician  of the hospital prior to admission. Within seventy-two hours,
excluding Sunday and holidays, after such admission, if such patient  is
to  be  retained for care and treatment beyond such time and he does not
agree to remain in such hospital as a voluntary patient, the certificate
of another examining physician who is a member of the psychiatric  staff
of  the  hospital  that  the  patient is in need of involuntary care and
treatment shall be filed  with  the  hospital.  From  the  time  of  his
admission  under this section the retention of such patient for care and
treatment shall be  subject  to  the  provisions  for  notice,  hearing,
review,  and  judicial  approval  of continued retention or transfer and
continued retention provided by  this  article  for  the  admission  and
retention  of  involuntary  patients, provided that, for the purposes of
such provisions, the date of admission of the patient shall be deemed to
be the date when the patient was first received in  the  hospital  under
this section.
* NB Effective July 1, 2027
(b)  The  application  for  admission  of  a  patient pursuant to this
section shall be based upon a personal  examination  by  a  director  of

community  services or his designee. It shall be in writing and shall be
filed with the director of such hospital at the time  of  the  patient's
reception,  together  with  a  statement  in  a  form  prescribed by the
commissioner giving such information as he may deem appropriate.
(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (b) of this section,
in  counties  with  a  population  of  less than two hundred thousand, a
director of community services who is a licensed  psychologist  pursuant
to  article  one  hundred fifty-three of the education law or a licensed
clinical social worker pursuant to article one hundred fifty-four of the
education law but who is not a physician may apply for the admission  of
a  patient  pursuant  to this section without a medical examination by a
designated  physician,  if  a  hospital  approved  by  the  commissioner
pursuant  to  section  9.39 of this article is not located within thirty
miles of the patient, and the director of community services has made  a
reasonable  effort to locate a designated examining physician but such a
designee is not immediately available  and  the  director  of  community
services,  after personal observation of the person, reasonably believes
that he may have a mental illness which is likely to result  in  serious
harm  to  himself  or  others  and  inpatient care and treatment of such
person in a hospital may be appropriate. In the event of an  application
pursuant  to  this  subdivision,  a  physician of the receiving hospital
shall examine the patient and shall not admit the patient unless  he  or
she determines that the patient has a mental illness for which immediate
inpatient  care  and treatment in a hospital is appropriate and which is
likely to result in serious harm to himself or others. If the patient is
admitted, the need for hospitalization shall  be  confirmed  by  another
staff  physician  within  twenty-four  hours. An application pursuant to
this subdivision shall be  in  writing  and  shall  be  filed  with  the
director  of  such  hospital  at  the  time  of the patient's reception,
together with a statement in  a  form  prescribed  by  the  commissioner
giving  such  information  as  he  may  deem  appropriate,  including  a
statement of the efforts made by the director of community  services  to
locate  a  designated examining physician prior to making an application
pursuant to this subdivision.
(d) After signing the application, the director of community  services
or  the  director's  designee  shall be authorized and empowered to take
into custody, detain, transport, and provide temporary care for any such
person. Upon the written request of  such  director  or  the  director's
designee it shall be the duty of peace officers, when acting pursuant to
their  special  duties,  or police officers who are members of the state
police or of an authorized police department or force or of a  sheriff's
department  to  take  into  custody  and  transport  any  such person as
requested and directed by such director or designee.  Upon  the  written
request  of  such director or designee, an ambulance service, as defined
in subdivision two of section three thousand one of  the  public  health
law, is authorized to transport any such person.
(e)  Reasonable  expenses incurred by the director of community mental
hygiene services or his designee for the examination and temporary  care
of  the patient and his transportation to and from the hospital shall be
a charge upon the county from which the patient was admitted  and  shall
be paid from any funds available for such purposes.
(f) The provisions of this section shall not be applicable to continue
any  patient in a hospital who has already been admitted to the hospital
under this or any other section of this article.
(g) If a person is examined and determined to be mentally ill the fact
that such person suffers from  alcohol  or  substance  abuse  shall  not
preclude commitment under this section.