222.31 - COMMITMENT -- LIABILITY FOR CHARGES. - Iowa Statutes

222.31 COMMITMENT -- LIABILITY FOR CHARGES. 1. If in the opinion of the court, or of a commission as authorized in section 222.28, the person is mentally retarded within the meaning of this chapter and the court determines that it will be conducive to the welfare of that person and of the community to commit the person to a proper institution for treatment, training, instruction, care, habilitation, and support, and that services or support provided to the family of such a person who is a child will not enable the family to continue to care for the child in the child's home, the court shall by proper order: a. Commit the person to any public or private facility within or without the state, approved by the director of the department of human services. If the person has not been examined by a commission as appointed in section 222.28, the court shall, prior to issuing an order of commitment, appoint such a commission to examine the person for the purpose of determining the mental condition of the person. No order of commitment shall be issued unless the commission shall recommend that such order be issued and the private institution to which the person is to be committed shall advise the court that it is willing to receive the person. b. (1) Commit the person to the state resource center designated by the administrator to serve the county in which the hearing is being held, or to a special unit. The court shall, prior to issuing an order of commitment, request that a diagnostic evaluation of the person be made by the superintendent of the resource center or the special unit, or the superintendent's qualified designee. The evaluation shall be conducted at a place as the superintendent may direct. The cost of the evaluation shall be defrayed by the county of legal settlement unless otherwise ordered by the court. The cost may be equal to but shall not exceed the actual cost of the evaluation. Persons referred by a court to a resource center or the special unit for diagnostic evaluation shall be considered as outpatients of the institution. No order of commitment shall be issued unless the superintendent of the institution recommends that the order be issued, and advises the court that adequate facilities for the care of the person are available. (2) The court shall examine the report of the county attorney filed pursuant to section 222.13, and if the report shows that neither the person nor those liable for the person's support under section 222.78 are presently able to pay the charges rising out of the person's care in a resource center, or special treatment unit, shall enter an order stating that finding and directing that the charges be paid by the person's county of residence. The court may, upon request of the board of supervisors, review its finding at any subsequent time while the person remains at the resource center, or is otherwise receiving care or treatment for which this chapter obligates the county to pay. If the court finds upon review that the person or those legally responsible for the person are presently able to pay the expenses, that finding shall apply only to the charges incurred during the period beginning on the date of the board's request for the review and continuing thereafter, unless and until the court again changes its finding. If the court finds that the person, or those liable for the person's support, are able to pay the charges, the court shall enter an order directing that the charges be so paid to the extent required by section 222.78. 2. In its order, the court shall include a finding as to whether the person has sufficient mental capacity to comprehend and exercise the right to vote.          Section History: Early Form [C24, 27, 31, 35, 39, § 3428; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, § 222.18; C66, 71, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, § 222.31]          Section History: Recent Form 83 Acts, ch 96, § 157, 159; 83 Acts, ch 123, § 81, 209; 84 Acts, ch 1299, § 2, 3; 85 Acts, ch 67, § 23; 92 Acts, ch 1229, § 2; 98 Acts, ch 1185, §7; 2000 Acts, ch 1112, §51; 2009 Acts, ch 133, §215 Referred to in §48A.2, 222.16, 222.36, 222.59