H.F. No. 3274 Summary

• Residential treatment service providers must complete diagnostic assessments within 10 calendar days of a child's admission, or waive the requirement if an assessment was completed within the past 180 days and the child's mental health status has not markedly changed.

• Psychiatric residential treatment facilities must provide at least one staff person for every eight residents during normal sleeping hours.

• Qualified residential treatment programs must meet eight requirements including trauma-informed treatment models, 24/7 licensed clinical staff, independent accreditation, family involvement in treatment, and at least six months of post-discharge aftercare support.

• The commissioner of human services must report by February 1, 2023, to legislative committees on plans to establish a sustainable reimbursement policy for psychiatric residential treatment facility level of care.

• $10,500,000 is appropriated in fiscal year 2023 for emergency funding to licensed children's residential treatment facilities for staff overtime, one-to-one staffing, recruitment and retention, and training costs, with up to $1,500,000 available for group home organizations supporting transitioning children.