New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 10 - HUMAN SERVICES › Chapter 161B - STANDARDS FOR LICENSURE OF OUTPATIENT SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER TREATMENT FACILITIES › Subchapter 16 - CLIENT RIGHTS › Section 10:161B-16.2 - Rights of each client

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) Each client
				receiving services shall have:
1. The right
				to be informed of these rights, as evidenced by the client's written
				acknowledgment or by documentation by staff in the clinical record that the
				client was offered a written copy of these rights and given a written or verbal
				explanation of these rights in terms the client could understand;
2. The right to be notified of any rules and
				policies the program has established governing client conduct in the
				facility;
3. The right to be
				informed of services available in the program, the names and professional
				status of the staff providing and/or responsible for the client's care, and
				fees and related charges, including the payment, fee, deposit, and refund
				policy of the program and any charges for services not covered by sources of
				third-party payment or the program's basic rate;
4. The right to be informed if the program
				has authorized other health care and educational institutions to participate in
				his or her treatment, the identity and function of these institutions, and to
				refuse to allow their participation in his or her treatment;
5. The right to receive from his or her
				physicians or clinical practitioner(s) an explanation of his or her complete
				medical/health condition or diagnosis, recommended treatment, treatment
				options, including the option of no treatment, risks(s) of treatment, and
				expected result(s), in terms that he or she understands;
i. If, in the opinion of the medical director
				or director of substance abuse counseling, this information would be
				detrimental to the client's health, or if the client is not capable of
				understanding the information, the explanation shall be provided to a family
				member, legal guardian or significant other, as available;
ii. Release of information to a family
				member, legal guardian or significant other, along with the reason for not
				informing the client directly, shall be documented in the client's clinical
				record; and
iii. All consents to
				release information shall be signed by client or their parent, guardian or
				legally authorized representative;
6. The right to participate in the planning
				of his or her care and treatment, and to refuse medication and treatment;
i. A client's refusal of medication or
				treatment shall be documented in the client's clinical record;
7. The right to participate in
				experimental research only when the client gives informed, written consent to
				such participation, or when a guardian or legally authorized representative
				gives such consent for an incompetent client in accordance with law, rule and
				regulation;
8. The right to voice
				grievances or recommend changes in policies and services to program staff, the
				governing authority, and/or outside representatives of his or her choice either
				individually or as group, free from restraint, interference, coercion,
				discrimination, or reprisal;
9. The
				right to be free from mental and physical abuse, exploitation, and from use of
				restraints;
i. A client's ordered medications
				shall not be withheld for failure to comply with facility rules or procedures,
				unless the decision is made to terminate the client in accordance with this
				chapter; medications may only be withheld when the facility medical staff
				determines that such action is medically indicated;
10. The right to confidential treatment of
				information about the client;
i. Information
				in the client's clinical record shall not be released to anyone outside the
				program without the client's written approval to release the information in
				accordance with Federal statutes and rules for the Confidentiality of Alcohol
				and Drug Abuse Client Records at
42 U.S.C.
				290dd-2,
and 290ee-2, and 42 CFR
				Part 2 ??2.1 et seq., and the provisions of the Health Insurance Portability
				and Accountability Act (HIPAA) at 45 CFR Parts 160 and 164, unless the release
				of the information is required and permitted by law, a third-party payment
				contract, a peer review, or the information is needed by DHS for statutorily
				authorized purposes; and
ii. The
				program may release data about the client for studies containing aggregated
				statistics only when the client's identity is protected and masked;
11. The right to be treated with
				courtesy, consideration, respect, and with recognition of his or her dignity,
				individuality, and right to privacy, including, but not limited to, auditory
				and visual privacy;
i. The client's privacy
				also shall be respected when program staff are discussing the client with
				others;
12. The right to
				exercise civil and religious liberties, including the right to independent
				personal decisions;
i. No religious beliefs
				or practices, or any attendance at religious services, shall be imposed upon
				any client;
13. The
				right to not be discriminated against because of age, race, religion, sex,
				nationality, sexual orientation, disability (including, but not limited to,
				blind, deaf, hard of hearing), or ability to pay; or to be deprived of any
				constitutional, civil, and/or legal rights.
i. Programs shall not discriminate against
				clients taking medications as prescribed;
14. The right to be transferred or discharged
				only for medical reasons, for the client's welfare, that of other clients or
				staff upon the written order of a physician or other licensed clinician, or for
				failure to pay required fees as agreed at time of admission (except as
				prohibited by sources of third-party payment);
i. Transfers and discharges, and the reasons
				therefore, shall be documented in the client's clinical record; and
ii. If a transfer or discharge on a
				non-emergency basis is planned by the outpatient substance use disorder
				treatment program, the client and his or her family shall be given at least 10
				days advance notice of such transfer or discharge, except as otherwise provided
				for in
10:161B-6.4(c)
;
15. The
				right to be notified in writing, and to have the opportunity to appeal, an
				involuntary discharge; and
16. The
				right to have access to and obtain a copy of his or her clinical record, in
				accordance with the program's policies and procedures and applicable Federal
				and State laws and rules.