§ 122C-361. Compact entered into; form of Compact. - North Carolina Statutes

Part 14.Interstate Compact on Mental Health.

§ 122C‑361.  Compactentered into; form of Compact.

The Interstate Compact onMental Health is hereby enacted into law and entered into by this State withall other states legally joining therein in the form substantially as follows:The contracting states solemnly agree that:

Article I.

The party states find that theproper and expeditious treatment of the mentally ill and mentally deficient canbe facilitated by cooperative action, to the benefit of the patients, theirfamilies, and society as a whole. Further, the party states find that thenecessity of and desirability for furnishing such care and treatment bears noprimary relation to the residence or citizenship of the patient but, that, onthe contrary, the controlling factors of community safety and humanitarianismrequire that facilities and services be made available for all who are in needof them. Consequently, it is the purpose of this Compact and of the partystates to provide the necessary legal basis for the institutionalization orother appropriate care and treatment of the mentally ill and mentally deficientunder a system that recognizes the paramount importance of patient welfare andto establish the responsibilities of the party states in term of such welfare.

Article II.

As used in this Compact:

(a)        "Sendingstate" shall mean a party state from which a patient is transportedpursuant to the provisions of the Compact or from which it is contemplated thata patient may be so sent.

(b)        "Receivingstate" shall mean a party state to which a patient is transported pursuantto the provisions of the Compact or to which it is contemplated that a patientmay be so sent.

(c)        "Institution"shall mean any hospital or other facility maintained by a party state orpolitical subdivision thereof for the care and treatment of mental illness ormental deficiency.

(d)        "Patient"shall mean any person subject to or eligible as determined by the laws of thesending state, for institutionalization or other care, treatment, orsupervision pursuant to the provisions of this Compact.

(e)        "Aftercare"shall mean care, treatment and services provided  a patient, as defined herein,on convalescent status or conditional release.

(f)         "Mentalillness" shall mean mental disease to such extent that a person soafflicted requires care and treatment for his own welfare, or the welfare ofothers, or of the community.

(g)        "Mentaldeficiency" shall mean mental deficiency as defined by appropriateclinical authorities to such extent that a person so afflicted is incapable ofmanaging himself and his affairs, but shall not include mental illness asdefined herein.

(h)        "State"shall mean any state, territory or possession of the  United States, theDistrict of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

Article III.

(a)        Whenever a personphysically present in any party state shall be in need of institutionalizationby reason of mental illness or mental deficiency, he shall be eligible for careand treatment in an institution in that state irrespective of his residence,settlement or citizenship qualifications.

(b)        The provisions ofparagraph (a) of this Article to the contrary notwithstanding, any patient maybe transferred to an institution in another state whenever there are factors basedupon clinical determinations indicating that the care and treatment of saidpatient would be facilitated or improved thereby. Any such institutionalizationmay be for the entire period of care and treatment or for any portion orportions thereof. The factors referred to in this paragraph shall include thepatient's full record with due regard for the location of the patient's family,character of the illness and probable duration thereof, and such other factorsas shall be considered appropriate.

(c)        No state shall beobliged to receive any patient pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (b) ofthis Article unless the sending state has given advance notice of its intentionto send the patient; furnished all available medical and other pertinent recordsconcerning the patient; given the qualified medical or other appropriateclinical authorities of the receiving state an opportunity to examine thepatient if said authorities so wish; and unless the receiving state shall agreeto accept the patient.

(d)        In the event thatthe laws of the receiving state establish a system of priorities for theadmission of patients, an interstate patient under this Compact shall receivethe same priority as a local patient and shall be taken in the same order andat the same time that it would be taken if he were a local patient.

(e)        Pursuant to thisCompact, the determination as to the suitable  place of institutionalizationfor a patient may be reviewed at any time and such further transfer of thepatient may be made as seems likely to be in the best interest of the patient.

Article IV.

(a)        Whenever, pursuantto the laws of the state in which a patient is physically present, it shall bedetermined that the patient should receive aftercare or supervision, such careor supervision may be provided in a receiving state. If the medical or otherappropriate clinical authorities have responsibility for the care and treatmentof the patient in the sending state shall have reason to believe that aftercarein another state would be in the best interest of the patient and would notjeopardize the public safety, they shall request the appropriate authorities inthe receiving state to investigate the desirability of affording the patientsuch aftercare in said receiving state, and such investigation shall be madewith all reasonable speed. The request for investigation shall be accompaniedby complete information concerning the patient's intended place of residenceand the identity of the person in whose charge it is proposed to place the patient,the complete medical history of the patient, and such other documents as may bepertinent.

(b)        If the medical orother appropriate clinical authorities having responsibility for the care andtreatment of the patient in the sending state and the appropriate authoritiesin the receiving state find that the best interest of the patient would beserved thereby, and if the public safety would not be jeopardized thereby, thepatient may receive aftercare or supervision in the receiving state.

(c)        In supervising,treating, or caring for a patient on aftercare  pursuant to the terms of thisArticle, a receiving state shall employ the same standards of visitation,examination, care, and treatment that it employs for similar local patients.

Article V.

Whenever a dangerous orpotentially dangerous patient escapes from an institution in any party state,that state shall promptly notify all appropriate authorities within and withoutthe jurisdiction of the escape in a way reasonably calculated to facilitate thespeedy apprehension of the escapee. Immediately upon the apprehension andidentification of any such dangerous or potentially dangerous patient, he shallbe detained in the state where found pending disposition in accordance withlaw.

Article VI.

The duly accredited officersof any state party to this Compact, upon the establishment of their authorityand the identity of the patient, shall be permitted to transport any patientbeing moved pursuant to this Compact through any and all states party to this Compact,without inferference.

Article VII.

(a)        No person shall bedeemed a patient of more than one institution at any given time. Completion oftransfer of any patient to an institution in a receiving state shall have theeffect of making the person a patient of the institution in the receivingstate.

(b)        The sending stateshall pay all costs of and incidental to the  transportation of any patientpursuant to this Compact, but any two or more party states may, by making aspecific agreement for that purpose, arrange for a different allocation ofcosts as among themselves.

(c)        No provision ofthis Compact shall be construed to alter or affect any internal relationshipsamong the departments, agencies and officers of and in the government of aparty state, or between a party state and its subdivisions, as to the paymentof costs, or responsibilities therefor.

(d)        Nothing in thisCompact shall be construed to prevent any party state or subdivision thereoffrom asserting any right against any person, agency or other entity in regardto costs for which such party state or subdivision thereof may be responsiblepursuant to any provision of this Compact.

(e)        Nothing in thisCompact shall be construed to invalidate any reciprocal agreement between aparty state and a nonparty state relating to institutionalization, care ortreatment of the mentally ill or mentally deficient, or any statutory authoritypursuant to which such agreements may be made.

Article VIII.

(a)        Nothing in thisCompact shall be construed to abridge, diminish, or in any way impair therights, duties, and responsibilities of any patient's guardian on his ownbehalf or in respect of any patient for whom he may serve, except that wherethe transfer of any patient to another jurisdiction makes advisable theappointment of a supplemental or substitute guardian, any court of competentjurisdiction in the receiving state may make such supplemental or substituteappointment and the court which appointed the previous guardian shall uponbeing duly advised of the new appointment, and upon the satisfactory completionof such accounting and other acts as such court may by law require, relieve theprevious guardian of power and responsibility to whatever extent shall beappropriate in the circumstances; provided, however, that in the case of anypatient having settlement in the sending state, the court of competentjurisdiction in the sending state shall have the sole discretion to relieve aguardian appointed by it or continue his power and responsibility, whichever itshall deem advisable. The court in the receiving state may, in its discretion,confirm or reappoint the person or persons previously serving as guardian inthe sending state in lieu of making a supplemental or substitute appointment.

(b)        The term "guardian"as used in paragraph (a) of this Article shall include any guardian, trustee,legal committee, conservator, or other person or agency however denominated whois charged by law with power to act for or responsibility for the person orproperty of a patient.

Article IX.

(a)        No provision ofthis Compact except Article V shall apply to any person institutionalized whileunder sentence in a penal or correctional institution or while subject to trialon a criminal charge, or whose institutionalization is due to the commission ofan offense for which, in the absence of mental illness or mental deficiency,said person would be subject to incarceration in a penal or correctionalinstitution.

(b)        To every extentpossible, it shall be the policy of states party to this Compact that nopatient shall be placed or detained in any prison, jail or lockup, but suchpatient shall, with all expedition, be taken to a suitable institutionalfacility for mental illness or mental deficiency.

Article X.

(a)        Each party stateshall appoint a "Compact Administrator" who, on behalf of his state,shall act as general coordinator of activities under the Compact in his stateand who shall receive copies of all reports, correspondence, and otherdocuments relating to any patient processed under the Compact by his stateeither in the capacity of sending or receiving state. The Compact Administratoror his duly designated representative shall be the official with whom otherparty states shall deal in any matter relating to the Compact or any patientprocessed thereunder.

(b)        The CompactAdministrators of the respective party states shall have power to promulgatereasonable rules and regulations to carry out more effectively the terms andprovisions of this Compact.

Article XI.

The duly constitutedadministrative authorities of any two or more party states may enter intosupplementary agreements for the provision of any service or facility or forthe maintenance of any institution on a joint or cooperative basis whenever thestates concerned shall find that such agreements will improve services,facilities, or institutional care and treatment in the fields of mental illnessor mental deficiency. No such supplementary agreement shall be construed so asto relieve any party state of any obligation which it otherwise would haveunder other provisions of this Compact.

Article XII.

This Compact shall enter intofull force and effect as to any state when enacted by it into law and suchstate shall thereafter be a party thereto with any and all states legallyjoining therein.

Article XIII.

(a)        A state party tothis Compact may withdraw therefrom by enacting a statute repealing the same.Such withdrawal shall take effect one year after notice thereof has beencommunicated officially and in writing to the governors and Compactadministrators of all other party states. However, the withdrawal of any stateshall not change the status of any patient who has been sent to said state orsent out of said state pursuant to the provisions of the Compact.

(b)        Withdrawal from anyagreement permitted by Article VII(b) as to costs or from any supplementaryagreement made pursuant to Article XI shall be in accordance with the terms ofsuch agreement.

Article XIV.

This Compact shall beliberally construed so as to effectuate the purposes thereof. The provisions ofthis Compact shall be severable and if any phrase, clause, sentence orprovision of this Compact is declared to be contrary to the constitution of anyparty state or of the United States or the applicability thereof to anygovernment, agency, person or circumstance is held invalid, the validity of theremainder of this Compact and the applicability thereof to any government,agency, person or circumstance shall not be affected thereby. If this Compact shallbe held contrary to the constitution of any state party thereto, the Compactshall remain in full force and effect as to the remaining states and in fullforce and effect as to the state affected as to all severable matters. (1959, c. 1003, s. 1; 1963,c. 1184, s. 12; 1985, c. 589, s. 2.)