PREVENTABLE TRAGEDIES The Preventable Tragedies database includes summaries of news articles of which an individual with a neurobiological brain disorder (usually untreated) is involved in a violent episode, either as a victim or perpetrator. Search for West Virginia episodes by choosing WV in the drop down box.

History

ARTICLE Mental-health bill advances in House - A bill designed to require treatment for “revolving-door” mental patients passed a major hurdle in the House of Delegates on Monday. The House Judiciary Committee unanimously approved an amended version of the bill (SB191), which already passed the Senate and now goes to the entire House of Delegates for consideration. Last year, the committee failed to recommend the bill.

In 1999, the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals formed a Mental Hygiene Reform Commission. The Commission looked in depth at West Virginia's "mental hygiene" laws and procedures, that govern the involuntary hospitalization of people due to retardation, addiction, or mental illness.

A number of the Commission's recommended legislative improvements were contained in Senate Bill 193, which was passed by the Legislature on April 14, 2001, and signed into law by Governor Bob Wise on May 2, 2001. The new legislation went into effect in mid-July  2001.

EDITORIAL Short Takes - Current [West Virginia] law requires a hearing before any treatment is provided. The proposed change would allow people to be held for 72 hours once certain due-process standards are met. "West Virginia is the only state in the union where we convene a full-blown hearing just to get a person in crisis due to mental illness into short-term stabilization and treatment," state Supreme Court Justice Larry Starcher has said.
Charleston Daily Mail, March 6, 2004

ARTICLE The Chair of the Mental Hygiene Reform Commission discusses the new law - "West Virginia has improved our mental hygiene process," Bill Byrne, Esq., Chair, Supreme Court Mental Hygiene Reform Commission and Tom Rodd, Senior Law Clerk, West Virginia Supreme Court.
Catalyst (TAC newsletter), May/June 2001

ARTICLE West Virginia's Commission on Mental Hygiene Reform reaches consensus on a need for treatment standard - On December 15, 1999, the Commission on Mental Health reform issued its Final Report that contained thirteen recommendations falling into three categories: 1) standards and procedures; 2) services; and 3) accountability, oversight and education. The Commission recommended that the Legislature amend the standard for assisted treatment so that it encompasses persons with mental illness whose judgment is impaired and those who exhibit similar behavior to that which previously resulted in court-ordered treatment.
Catalyst (TAC newsletter), March/April 2000

REPORT (in PDF) The Final Report of the Commission on Mental Hygiene Reform - In 1974, the average length of stay in a West Virginia psychiatric hospital was 15.91 years; today the average stay is 15 days. There were thousands of individuals in the state’s psychiatric hospitals 25 years ago, while today there are less than 250. Most significantly, "there has been a revolution in the understanding and treatment of mental illness, including the use of modern medications that can dramatically ameliorate the symptoms of many mental illnesses."
PLEASE NOTE: This page is in PDF format and requires Adobe Acrobat Reader to view it.
"The Final Report of the Commission on Mental Hygiene Reform (WV)," December 15, 1999

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