222.31 - COMMITMENT -- LIABILITY FOR CHARGES.
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