To: Board of Supervisors
From: Anna Roth, Health Services Director
Report Title: Deferred Implementation of Senate Bill 43
?Recommendation of the County Administrator ? Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
ADOPT Resolution No. to defer, until January 1, 2026, implementation of changes made by Senate Bill 43 to the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Deferring implementation of the changes made by Senate Bill 43 has no fiscal impact.
BACKGROUND:
Senate Bill 43 (SB 43) amends the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act (LPS Act) by expanding the definition of "gravely disabled" for purposes of placing a person on an involuntary psychiatric hold or an LPS conservatorship. Commencing January 1, 2024, the expanded definition of "gravely disabled" will include individuals with a severe substance use disorder (or a co-occurring mental health disorder and a severe substance use disorder) who, due to their mental health or severe substance use disorder, are unable to provide for their personal safety or necessary medical care. SB 43 authorizes a county, by adoption of a resolution of its board of supervisors, to defer implementation of these changes until January 1, 2026, thereby postponing implementation of the new definition of "grave disability."
Expanding the definition of grave disability to include persons believed to have a severe substance use disorder (SUD) is projected to increase the portion of the county's population subject to involuntary treatment. Peace officers and county-designated professionals will have the ability to place a broader group of individuals on an involuntary hold and transport them to an LPS-designated facility for assessment, evaluation, and treatment. As a result, implementation of SB 43 is expected to result in a significant increase in the utilization of county health facilities, sub-acute treatment facilities, and treatment programs.
For SB 43 to be effective, the County's behavioral health system will need the infrastr...
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