HB 83 — An Act amending the act of February 13, 1970 (P.L.19, No.10), entitled "An act enabling certain minors to consent to medical, dental and health services, declaring consent unnecessary under certain circumstances," further providing for mental health treatment and for liability for rendering services; and providing for applicability.

PRINTER'S NO.   67

                     THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA



                         HOUSE BILL
                         No. 83
                                               Session of
                                                 2025

     INTRODUCED BY GLEIM, PICKETT, HAMM, M. MACKENZIE, GREINER,
        D'ORSIE, KAUFFMAN, STEHR, MALONEY, RAPP, BANTA AND MENTZER,
        JANUARY 14, 2025

     REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, JANUARY 14, 2025


                                    AN ACT
 1   Amending the act of February 13, 1970 (P.L.19, No.10), entitled
 2      "An act enabling certain minors to consent to medical, dental
 3      and health services, declaring consent unnecessary under
 4      certain circumstances," further providing for mental health
 5      treatment and for liability for rendering services; and
 6      providing for applicability.
 7      The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
 8   hereby enacts as follows:
 9      Section 1.    Sections 1.1(a)(2), (4), (5) and (7) and 5 of the
10   act of February 13, 1970 (P.L.19, No.10), entitled "An act
11   enabling certain minors to consent to medical, dental and health
12   services, declaring consent unnecessary under certain
13   circumstances," are amended to read:
14      Section 1.1.    Mental Health Treatment.--(a)   The following
15   shall apply to consent for voluntary inpatient and outpatient
16   mental health treatment:
17      * * *
18      (2)   A minor who is [fourteen] sixteen years of age or older
19   may consent on the minor's own behalf to voluntary inpatient
 1   mental health treatment as provided under Article II of the
 2   "Mental Health Procedures Act" or outpatient mental health
 3   treatment, and the minor's parent's or legal guardian's consent
 4   shall not be necessary.
 5      * * *
 6      (4)   A parent or legal guardian who has provided consent to
 7   voluntary inpatient or outpatient mental health treatment under
 8   paragraph (1) may revoke that consent, which revocation shall be
 9   effective unless the minor who is [fourteen] sixteen to eighteen
10   years of age has provided consent for continued voluntary
11   inpatient or outpatient mental health treatment.
12      (5)   A minor who is [fourteen] sixteen to eighteen years of
13   age who has provided consent to voluntary inpatient or
14   outpatient mental health treatment may revoke that consent,
15   which revocation shall be effective unless the parent or legal
16   guardian to the minor has provided for continued treatment under
17   paragraph (1).
18      * * *
19      (7)   When a petition is filed on behalf of a minor [fourteen]
20   sixteen years of age or older and under eighteen years of age
21   who has been confined for inpatient treatment on the consent of
22   a parent or legal guardian and who objects to continued
23   inpatient treatment by requesting a withdrawal from or
24   modification of treatment, the court shall promptly appoint an
25   attorney for the minor and schedule a hearing to be held within
26   seventy-two hours following the filing of the petition, unless
27   continued upon the request of the attorney for the minor, by a
28   judge or mental health review officer who shall determine
29   whether or not the voluntary mental health treatment is in the
30   best interest of the minor. For inpatient treatment to continue

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 1   against the minor's wishes, the court must find all of the
 2   following by clear and convincing evidence:
 3      (i)    that the minor has a diagnosed mental disorder;
 4      (ii)    that the disorder is treatable;
 5      (iii)    that the disorder can be treated in the particular
 6   facility where the treatment is taking place; and
 7      (iv)    that the proposed inpatient treatment setting
 8   represents the least restrictive alternative that is medically
 9   appropriate.
10      * * *
11      Section 5.    Liability for Rendering Services.--[The] (a)
12   Except as provided under subsection (b), the consent of a minor
13   who professes to be, but is not a minor whose consent alone is
14   effective to medical, dental and health services shall be deemed
15   effective without the consent of the minor's parent or legal
16   guardian, if the physician or other person relied in good faith
17   upon the representations of the minor.
18      (b)    If a physician or other person renders medical, dental
19   or health services or mental health treatment to a minor under
20   this act and the minor does not obtain the consent of a parent
21   or legal guardian, the physician or other person shall be liable
22   for the decisions of the minor.
23      Section 2.    The act is amended by adding a section to read:
24      Section 6.    Applicability.--(a)   This act shall not apply to
25   a minor who has special needs.
26      (b)    As used in this section, the term "special needs" means
27   significantly subaverage general intellectual functioning that
28   is accompanied by significant limitations in adaptive
29   functioning in at least two of the following skill areas:
30   communication, self-care, home living, social and interpersonal

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1   skills, use of community resources, self-direction, functional
2   academic skills, work, health and safety. The onset must occur
3   before the individual's twenty-second birthday.
4      Section 3.   This act shall take effect in 60 days.




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