§ 7256. Reporting requirements
Notwithstanding 2 V.S.A. § 20(d), the Department of Mental Health shall report annually on or before January 15 to
the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare and the House Committee on Health Care
regarding the extent to which individuals with a mental health condition or psychiatric
disability receive care in the most integrated and least restrictive setting available.
The Department shall consider measures from a variety of sources, including the Joint
Commission, the National Quality Forum, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services,
the National Institute of Mental Health, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration. The report shall address:
(1) use of services across the continuum of mental health services;
(2) adequacy of the capacity at each level of care across the continuum of mental health
services;
(3) individual experience of care and satisfaction;
(4) individual recovery in terms of clinical, social, and legal results;
(5) performance of the State’s mental health system of care as compared to nationally
recognized standards of excellence;
(6) ways in which patient autonomy and self-determination are maximized within the context
of involuntary treatment and medication;
(7) the number of petitions for involuntary medication filed by the State pursuant to
section 7624 of this title and the outcome in each case;
(8) barriers to discharge from mental health inpatient and secure residential levels of
care, including recommendations on how to address those barriers;
(9) performance measures that demonstrate results and other data on individuals for whom
petitions for involuntary medication are filed; and
(10) progress on alternative treatment options across the system of care for individuals
seeking to avoid or reduce reliance on medications, including supported withdrawal
from medications. (Added 2011, No. 79 (Adj. Sess.), § 1a, eff. April 4, 2012; amended 2013, No. 96 (Adj. Sess.), § 101; 2013, No. 192 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 2015, No. 11, § 19; 2023, No. 137 (Adj. Sess.), § 6, eff. July 1, 2024.)