Section 9.51. Residential treatment facilities for children and youth; admissions

(a) The director of a residential treatment facility for children  and
  youth may receive as a patient a person in need of care and treatment in
  such  a  facility  who  has  been  certified as needing such care by the
  pre-admission  certification  committee  serving  the  facility  and  in
  accordance  with priorities for admission established by such committee,
  as provided by this section. Subject to the provisions of this  section,
  the provisions of this article shall apply to admission and retention of
  patients to residential treatment facilities for children and youth.
    (b)  Persons  admitted  as  in-patients  to  hospitals operated by the
  office of mental health upon the application  of  the  director  of  the
  division  for  youth  pursuant  to  section  five  hundred  nine  of the
  executive law or 353.4 of the family court act who are not subject to  a
  restrictive placement pursuant to section 353.5 of the family court act,
  may, if appropriate, and subject to the provisions of subdivision (d) of
  this  section,  be  transferred  to a residential treatment facility for
  children and youth. The director of the  division  for  youth  shall  be
  notified  of  any  such  transfer. When appropriate, the director of the
  residential treatment facility may arrange the return of  a  patient  so
  transferred  to  the  hospital  or  the transfer of a patient to another
  hospital or, in accordance with subdivision four of section five hundred
  nine of the executive law, to the division for youth.
    (c)  The  commissioner  shall  designate  pre-admission  certification
  committees for defined geographic areas to evaluate each person proposed
  for  admission  or  transfer  to  a  residential  treatment facility for
  children and youth. When designating persons to serve  on  pre-admission
  certification  committees,  the  commissioners  shall  assure  that  the
  interests of the people residing in  the  area  to  be  served  by  each
  committee  are  represented.  Such  committees  shall  include  a person
  designated by the office of mental health, a person  designated  by  the
  state  commissioner  of  social  services and a person designated by the
  state commissioner of education. The commissioner of mental health shall
  consult with the conference of local mental hygiene  directors  and  the
  commissioner  of social services shall consult with county commissioners
  of social services in the area to be served  by  a  committee  prior  to
  designating  persons  to  serve  on  a  committee. The commissioners may
  designate persons who are not state employees to serve on  pre-admission
  certification  committees.  Membership  of  pre-admission  certification
  committees shall be limited to persons licensed in accordance  with  the
  education  law  to  practice  medicine, nursing, psychology, or licensed
  clinical social work. In the event the persons originally designated  to
  a  committee  by  the  commissioners  do  not  include  a physician, the
  commissioner shall designate a  physician  to  serve  as  an  additional
  member  of  the  committee.  Each  pre-admission certification committee
  shall designate five persons representing local  governments,  voluntary
  agencies,  parents  and  other  interested persons who shall serve as an
  advisory board to the committee. Such board  shall  have  the  right  to
  visit  residential treatment facilities for children and youth served by
  the committee and shall  have  the  right  to  review  clinical  records
  obtained by the pre-admission certification committee and shall be bound
  by the confidentiality requirements of section 33.13 of this chapter.
    (d)  All  applications for admission or transfer of an individual to a
  residential treatment facility for children and youth shall be  referred
  to  a  pre-admission certification committee for evaluation of the needs
  of the  individual  and  certification  of  the  individual's  need  for
  treatment  in  a  residential treatment facility for children and youth.
  Applications  shall  include   an   assessment   of   the   individual's

  psychiatric,  medical  and  social  needs  prepared in accordance with a
  uniform  assessment  method  specified  by  the   regulations   of   the
  commissioner.  The committee may at its discretion refer an applicant to
  a  hospital  or other facility operated or licensed by the office for an
  additional assessment. In the event of such an additional assessment  of
  the  individual's  needs,  the  facility conducting the assessment shall
  attempt to receive all third party insurance  or  federal  reimbursement
  available as payment for the assessment. The state shall pay the balance
  of  the  fees  which  may  be charged by the provider in accordance with
  applicable provisions of law. In addition, if necessary,  in  accordance
  with  section four thousand five of the education law, the pre-admission
  certification committee shall obtain an evaluation  of  the  educational
  needs  of  the child by the committee on special education of the school
  district of residence. The pre-admission certification  committee  shall
  review  all requests for evaluation and certification within thirty days
  of receipt of a complete application and any additional  assessments  it
  may  require  and,  using  a  uniform  assessment  method  specified  by
  regulation of the commissioner, evaluate the  psychiatric,  medical  and
  social  needs of the proposed admittee and certify: (i) the individual's
  need for services in a residential treatment facility for  children  and
  youth  and  (ii)  the  immediacy of that need, given the availability of
  such services in the area and the needs of other children  evaluated  by
  the  committee  and certified as eligible for admission to a residential
  treatment facility for children and youth who have not yet been admitted
  to such a facility. A pre-admission certification  committee  shall  not
  certify an individual for admission unless it finds that:
    (1)   Available   ambulatory  care  resources  and  other  residential
  placements do not meet the treatment needs of the individual;
    (2)  Proper  treatment  of  the  individual's  psychiatric   condition
  requires  in-patient  care  and  treatment  under  the  direction  of  a
  physician; and
    (3) Care  and  treatment  in  a  residential  treatment  facility  for
  children   and   youth   can  reasonably  be  expected  to  improve  the
  individual's condition or prevent further regression  so  that  services
  will  no  longer  be needed, provided that a poor prognosis shall not in
  itself constitute grounds for a denial of certification if treatment can
  be expected to effect a  change  in  prognosis.  All  decisions  of  the
  committee to recommend admission or priority of admission shall be based
  on  the  unanimous  vote of those present. The decision of the committee
  shall be reported to the applicant. In the event a committee evaluates a
  child who is the subject of a proceeding currently pending in the family
  court, the committee shall report its decision to the family court.
    No residential treatment facility for children and youth shall admit a
  person who has not been certified as suitable for such admission by  the
  appropriate pre-admission certification committee. Residential treatment
  facilities  shall  admit  children  in  accordance  with  priorities for
  admission  of  children  most  immediately  in  need  of  such  services
  established  by  the  pre-admission  certification committee serving the
  facility in accordance with standards established by the commissioner.
    (e) Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law,  no  government
  agency  shall  make  payments  pursuant to title nineteen of the federal
  social security act or articles five and six of the social services  law
  to  a  residential treatment facility for children and youth for service
  to a person whose need for care and treatment in such a facility was not
  certified pursuant to this section.
    (f) No person shall be admitted to a  residential  treatment  facility
  for  children  and  youth  who  has  a  mental  illness which presents a
  likelihood of serious harm to others; "likelihood of serious harm" shall

  mean a substantial risk of physical harm to other persons as  manifested
  by recent homicidal or other violent behavior by which others are placed
  in reasonable fear of serious physical harm.
    (g)   Notwithstanding   any  other  provision  of  law,  pre-admission
  certification committees shall be entitled to  review  clinical  records
  maintained  by  any  person  or entity which pertain to an individual on
  whose behalf an application is  made  for  admission  to  a  residential
  treatment facility for children and youth. Any clinical records received
  by a pre-admission certification committee and all assessments submitted
  to  the  committee  shall  be  kept  confidential in accordance with the
  provisions of  section  33.13  of  the  mental  hygiene  law,  provided,
  however,  that the commissioner may have access to and receive copies of
  such  records  for  the  purpose  of  evaluating   the   operation   and
  effectiveness of the committee.
    Confidentiality  of  clinical  records  of  treatment of a person in a
  residential  treatment  facility  for  children  and  youth   shall   be
  maintained as required in section 33.13 of this chapter. That portion of
  the  clinical  record maintained by a residential treatment facility for
  children and youth operated by an authorized agency specifically related
  to medical care and treatment shall not be considered part of the record
  required to be maintained by such authorized agency pursuant to  section
  three  hundred  seventy-two  of the social services law and shall not be
  discoverable in a proceeding under section three  hundred  fifty-eight-a
  of  the  social  services  law  or article ten-A of the family court act
  except upon order of the family court; provided, however, that all other
  information required by a local social services district or  the  office
  of  children  and family services for purposes of sections three hundred
  fifty-eight-a, four hundred nine-e and four hundred nine-f of the social
  services law and  article  ten-A  of  the  family  court  act  shall  be
  furnished  on request, and the confidentiality of such information shall
  be safeguarded as provided in section four hundred sixty-e of the social
  services law.