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NY A01596
Bill
Status
1/12/2017
Primary Sponsor
Gary Pretlow
Click for details
AI Summary
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Courts must order the sealing of mental health records upon request by someone who received inpatient or outpatient mental health services, if they have not received outpatient services for 10 years and competent medical evidence shows they are not currently suffering from mental illness.
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Records held by the Office of Mental Health, facilities, or any other entity identifying a person as a mental health services recipient must be sealed, subject to court-imposed limitations or exceptions.
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A presumption exists that records should be sealed for any person who received mental health services before their sixteenth birthday.
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Once records are sealed, the Office of Mental Health and other entities must respond to inquiries about the person's mental health history as though the admission or services never occurred, and the person may do the same.
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Petitioners may submit a request with an affidavit and competent medical evidence in a court-prescribed form without commencing a special proceeding, though they retain the right to pursue one if desired.
Legislative Description
Authorizes former outpatients of mental health facilities to request a court of competent jurisdiction to render an order to have their files sealed when more than ten years have elapsed since the last treatment in such facility, they are not currently being treated for mental illness and it would be in the best interests of the petitioner and society to seal such record without the requirement of a special proceeding.
Last Action
referred to mental health
1/3/2018