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FACT SHEET
Baker Act Reform
SB 700

[Note: this information was written before Governor Bush signed Baker Act reform into law on June 30, 2004.
The reform will be effective January 1, 2005.]

Florida's mental health law, the Baker Act, makes it difficult for mental health professionals and families to help adults who refuse treatment for severe mental illnesses. Florida is one of only nine states that does not allow court-ordered outpatient treatment for people with untreated severe mental illnesses. As inpatient beds continue to dwindle and hospitals continue to close, this often means that people who are in crisis end up in the streets or in jails instead of in treatment.

The Baker Act was created more than 30 years ago when we knew less about mental illnesses. Today we know that half of those with untreated severe mental illnesses have some impaired awareness of their illness - their brain disease actually affects their ability to understand that they are ill. The Florida Sheriffs Association is leading the effort to reform the Baker Act to keep those who are too ill to know they need help from getting trapped in the revolving door of short-term hospitalizations, incarcerations, victimization, and violence.

The consequences of non-treatment are horrific.  More than 15,000 Floridians with untreated mental illness are homeless. Between 7,511 and 10,798 inmates with severe mental illnesses are in Florida’s jails – more than three times as many people as are being treated in Florida’s state psychiatric hospitals. And nationally, people with untreated severe mental illnesses are 10 to 15 times more likely to commit suicide than the general population – and severe and persistent mental illness is estimated to be a factor in 10 to 15 percent of violence.

Recidivist costs are escalating and draining resources.  The Baker Act reform focuses on ensuring treatment for the small, but significant group of people with severe mental illnesses who have multiple involuntary admissions for psychiatric treatment or a history of violence.  In Florida in 2002, one individual alone accounted for 41 Baker Act examinations at an approximate cost of $81,000 – not including court costs, law enforcement resources, or long-term treatment. The number of Baker Act examinations for recidivists increased 50% between 2000 and 2002. There were 540 individuals with eight or more Baker Act emergency examinations in one 24 month period (2000 to 2001), averaging at least one every three months.  These recidivists use a disproportionately high share of mental health, criminal justice and court resources.

Law enforcement officers are not mental health professionals.  Even though treating severe mental illnesses should be a medical issue, law enforcement officers rather than mental health professionals are increasingly becoming the first point of contact for people needing treatment.  In 2000, law enforcement handled more Baker Acts than burglaries.  More than 100 times a day, law enforcement officers initiate the Baker Act for people with severe mental illnesses.  In nearly one-third of Florida counties in 2001, mental health professionals did not initiate a single Baker Act petition. Nationally, conservative estimates show that people with mental illnesses are killed in police altercations at a rate four times greater than the general population. It is expensive and dangerous to send a law enforcement officer – even one with specialized training – to manage a severe mental health crisis.

Court-ordered outpatient treatment works.  New York statistics on Kendra's Law showed that for people placed in assisted outpatient treatment: 63% fewer were hospitalized, 55% fewer experienced homelessness, 75% fewer were arrested, and 69% fewer were incarcerated.  A Duke University study showed that long-term assisted outpatient treatment: reduced the risk of arrest by 74%, hospitalization by up to 74%, victimization by 50%, and risk of violence by up to 50%. Court-ordered outpatient treatment can make existing services more effective.

For more on Baker Act reform, including supportive editorials from Florida papers like The Miami Herald, The St. Petersburg Times, and The Orlando Sentinel, visit www.bakeractreform.org.  (1/04)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Florida Baker Act main page | supportive editorials

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