Makes provisions regarding safety of certain employees of the office of mental health: provides that the commissioner of the office of mental health shall direct that in outpatient programs no employee shall be required to enter the residence of a person with a serious mental illness unless said employee is accompanied by at least one other employee of the program or other appropriate person; provides that the commissioner shall also direct that all such employees shall, when they are required to enter the residence of a recipient of services, be supplied with a wireless telephone or comparable device for the purposes of emergency communications; provides that the commissioner shall direct that employees serving as intensive case managers receive annual training in safety measures and violence prevention and that the commissioner shall insure the availability of such training; provides that funds appropriated for the operation of outpatient programs shall be expended to insure that there shall be at least one intensive case manager for each twelve persons receiving such services, and that there shall be no more than twelve persons receiving services from any one assertive case management team; directs the division of the budget to cause positions to be promptly filled in order to maintain said ratios.

---

S196-2011 Actions

• Jan 4, 2012: REFERRED TO MENTAL HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES
• May 4, 2011: REPORTED AND COMMITTED TO FINANCE
• Jan 5, 2011: REFERRED TO MENTAL HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES

S196-2011 Meetings

Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities: May 4, 2011

S196-2011 Votes

S196-2011 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S196

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to safety provisions for
employees of the office of mental health

PURPOSE:
The purpose of this legislation is to provide for the safety of mental
health workers who may be at risk of violent behaviors from patients
that they tend to.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Two new subdivisions (c) and (d) are added to � 7.25 of the mental
hygiene law. Subdivision (c) directs the commissioner of the Office
of Mental Health (OMH) to require that no OMH employee shall enter
the residence of a person with a serious mental illness unless
accompanied by at least one other OMH employee. Subdivision (c) also
directs the Commissioner to provide all OMH intensive case managers,
when required to enter the residence of a person with a serious
mental illness, with a wireless telephone or comparable device for
the purposes of emergency communications. Subdivision (d) directs the
commissioner of OMH to provide for the annual training of OMH
employees in safety and violence Prevention. OMH is further directed
to allocate or redistribute resources to ensure a ratio of no less
than one intensive case manager for each ten persons receiving
intensive case management services.

JUSTIFICATION:
There have been many violent incidents across New York State involving
persons with serious mental illness and the OMH caseworkers charged
with caring for them. Some of these incidents could well have been
avoided or at least made less severe if these employees had been in
the company of at least one other intensive case manager trained in
safety and violence prevention. This legislation would ensure that
OMH employees are better prepared to face situations in which violent
behavior threatening their safety and the safety of others may arise.

BILL HISTORY:
S.5524C of 2000; Referred to Senate Committee on Mental Health and
Developmental Disabilities
S.3359/A.5575 of 2002 Passed Assembly
S.1516/A.678 of 2003/2004; Referred to Senate Committee on Mental
Health and Developmental Disabilities
S.207 of 2005/2006; vetoed memo 247
S.3101 2007/2008; Delivered to Assembly, referred to ways and means
S.3216/A.7878 of 2009/2010; Referred to Senate Committee on Mental
Health and Developmental Disabilities

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: To be determined.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
60 days after being enacted.

S196-2011 Text

                      S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
  ________________________________________________________________________

                                     196

                         2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                              I N  SENATE

                                 (PREFILED)

                               January 5, 2011
                                 ___________

  Introduced by Sens. MAZIARZ, GOLDEN, GRIFFO, LARKIN, RANZENHOFER -- read
    twice  and  ordered  printed,  and when printed to be committed to the
    Committee on Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities

  AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to safety provisions
    for employees of the office of mental health

    THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
  BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


    Section 1. Section 7.25 of the mental hygiene law is amended by adding
  two new subdivisions (c) and (d) to read as follows:

    (C) IN ANY OUTPATIENT PROGRAM STAFFED IN WHOLE OR IN PART BY EMPLOYEES
  OF  THE  OFFICE  OF MENTAL HEALTH, THE COMMISSIONER SHALL DIRECT THAT NO
  EMPLOYEE SHALL BE REQUIRED TO ENTER THE  RESIDENCE  OF  A  RECIPIENT  OF
  SERVICES  WHO  IS  A  PERSON  WITH  SERIOUS MENTAL ILLNESS AS DEFINED IN
  SUBDIVISION FIFTY-TWO OF  SECTION  1.03  OF  THIS  CHAPTER  UNLESS  SUCH
  EMPLOYEE  IS  ACCOMPANIED BY AT LEAST ONE OTHER EMPLOYEE OF THE PROGRAM,
  OR OTHER APPROPRIATE PERSON.  THE COMMISSIONER SHALL  ALSO  DIRECT  THAT
  ALL  SUCH EMPLOYEES SHALL, WHEN THEY ARE REQUIRED TO ENTER THE RESIDENCE
  OF A RECIPIENT OF SERVICES, BE SUPPLIED WITH  A  WIRELESS  TELEPHONE  OR
  COMPARABLE DEVICE FOR THE PURPOSES OF EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS.
    (D)  THE COMMISSIONER SHALL DIRECT THAT ALL EMPLOYEES OF THE OFFICE OF
  MENTAL HEALTH SERVING AS INTENSIVE CASE MANAGERS  SHALL  RECEIVE  ANNUAL
  TRAINING  IN  SAFETY  AND VIOLENCE PREVENTION AND SHALL INSURE THAT SUCH
  TRAINING IS MADE AVAILABLE BY THE OFFICE  AFTER  CONSULTATION  WITH  THE
  EMPLOYEE  ORGANIZATIONS  REPRESENTING SUCH EMPLOYEES. FUNDS APPROPRIATED
  TO THE OFFICE OF MENTAL HEALTH FOR THE OPERATION OF OUTPATIENT  PROGRAMS
  SHALL  BE  EXPENDED BY THE OFFICE OF MENTAL HEALTH TO INSURE THAT SUFFI-
  CIENT STAFF SHALL BE EMPLOYED AS INTENSIVE CASE MANAGERS TO INSURE  THAT
  THERE  SHALL BE NO FEWER THAN ONE INTENSIVE CASE MANAGER FOR EACH TWELVE
  PERSONS RECEIVING SERVICES OF INTENSIVE CASE MANAGEMENT; AND IN THE CASE
  OF ASSERTIVE COMMUNITY TREATMENT TEAMS THE SAME STAFF TO CONSUMER  RATIO

   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD01215-01-1

 S. 196                              2

  SHALL  BE  MAINTAINED.    IN  THE  EVENT ANY SUCH STAFF POSITIONS BECOME
  VACANT, THE COMMISSIONER AND THE DIVISION OF  BUDGET  SHALL  CAUSE  SUCH
  POSITIONS TO BE PROMPTLY FILLED IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN AT LEAST SUCH RATIO
  OF STAFF TO RECIPIENTS.
    S  2.  This  act  shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall
  have become a law.