222.13A - VOLUNTARY ADMISSIONS -- MINORS.
222.13A VOLUNTARY ADMISSIONS -- MINORS.
1. If a minor is believed to be a person with mental retardation,
the minor's parent, guardian, or custodian may request the county
board of supervisors to apply for admission of the minor as a
voluntary patient in a state resource center. If the resource center
does not have appropriate services for the minor's treatment, the
board of supervisors may arrange for the admission of the minor in a
public or private facility within or without the state, approved by
the director of human services, which offers appropriate services for
the minor's treatment.
2. Upon receipt of an application for voluntary admission of a
minor, the board of supervisors shall provide for a preadmission
diagnostic evaluation of the minor to confirm or establish the need
for the admission. The preadmission diagnostic evaluation shall be
performed by a person who meets the qualifications of a qualified
mental retardation professional who is designated through the central
point of coordination process.
3. During the preadmission diagnostic evaluation, the minor shall
be informed both orally and in writing that the minor has the right
to object to the voluntary admission. If the preadmission diagnostic
evaluation determines that the voluntary admission is appropriate but
the minor objects to the admission, the minor shall not be admitted
to the state resource center unless the court approves of the
admission. A petition for approval of the minor's admission may be
submitted to the juvenile court by the minor's parent, guardian, or
custodian.
4. As soon as practicable after the filing of a petition for
approval of the voluntary admission, the court shall determine
whether the minor has an attorney to represent the minor in the
proceeding. If the minor does not have an attorney, the court shall
assign to the minor an attorney. If the minor is unable to pay for
an attorney, the attorney shall be compensated by the county at an
hourly rate to be established by the county board of supervisors in
substantially the same manner as provided in section 815.7.
5. The court shall order the admission of a minor who objects to
the admission, only after a hearing in which it is shown by clear and
convincing evidence that both of the following circumstances exist:
a. The minor needs and will substantially benefit from
treatment or habilitation.
b. A placement which involves less restriction of the minor's
liberties for the purposes of treatment or habilitation is not
feasible. Section History: Recent Form
95 Acts, ch 82, §8; 96 Acts, ch 1183, § 3; 99 Acts, ch 135, §15;
2000 Acts, ch 1112, §51; 2004 Acts, ch 1090, §33
Referred to in § 222.13, 222.15, 222.59