SPONSOR: Thompson
This bill establishes the "End Hospital Institutionalization Act". The juvenile court, upon notification from a hospital that a child under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court is being boarded at a hospital when he or she is medically stable but unable to be discharged for reasons specified in the bill, shall immediately intervene to ensure the child is placed in an appropriate setting and afforded proper treatment. For boarded children not under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court, the court shall immediately take custody of the child to ensure that the child is placed in an appropriate setting and afforded proper treatment. For boarded individuals diagnosed with a developmental disability, serious mental illness, or substance use disorder, the Department of Mental Health must provide case management and treatment without delay and in the least restrictive environment possible.
The state will reimburse the hospital the actual costs for boarding, or the hospital's full allowable costs under MO HealthNet, whichever is greater, for each day an individual is boarded after the juvenile court or the Department has been notified of the boarding of the individual.
This bill is similar to SB 1151 (2026) and HB 2664 (2024).
Statutes affected: