What's happening
This bill allows former mental health outpatients to request court-ordered sealing of their treatment records after ten years.
Why it matters
Improves privacy and reduces stigma for former mental health outpatients. by allowing them to legally seal records after ten years without treatment, potentially easing concerns about discrimination in employment, housing, or other areas where mental health history may have been a barrier.
Empowers individuals with greater control over their personal mental health information. , enabling them to respond to inquiries as if the treatment never occurred, thus giving them a fresh start and reducing long-term consequences of seeking mental health care.
Establishes a legal process with safeguards. such as requiring competent medical evidence and court approval—to ensure sealing is only granted when there is no current mental illness and it serves both individual and societal interests, balancing privacy with public safety.
Particularly benefits those treated as minors. , as the law presumes it is in the best interest of both the person and society to seal records of mental health treatment received before age sixteen, recognizing the importance of not letting childhood mental health history impact adult opportunities.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Seal Old Mental Health Records
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to mental health
- Referred to mental health
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1596
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 12, 2017
Introduced by M. of A. PRETLOW -- read once and referred to the Committee on Mental Health
AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to directing courts of law, upon request, to seal the files of certain former outpatients of mental health facilities after ten years
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision (b) of section 33.14 of the mental hygiene law is relettered subdivision (c) and a new subdivision (b) is added to read as follows:
(b) (1) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, upon request by a person who has been admitted to receive inpatient or outpatient services for mental illness, a court of competent jurisdiction shall render an order directing the sealing of records held by the office of mental health, a facility, or any other individual or public or private entity, which identify a person as a recipient of services for mental illness, subject to such limitations or exceptions as the court may impose, upon a finding that competent medical evidence has demonstrated that the person identified in such records is not currently suffering from a mental illness, has not for a period of ten years received outpatient services for the treatment of a mental illness, and the interests of such person and society would best be served by sealing such person's records. It shall be presumed that it would be in the best interests of such person and society to seal any record of a person's receipt of services for the treatment of mental illness prior to his or her sixteenth birthday.
(2) Such request shall be in a form prescribed by the court and shall include an affidavit executed by such petitioner and filed with the court along with competent medical evidence pursuant to paragraph one of this subdivision. A petitioner shall not be required to commence a special proceeding under this subdivision, provided, however, that this
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05286-01-7
A. 1596 2
subdivision shall not adversely affect a petitioner's right to a special proceeding, hearing or any other right under this chapter.
(3) Except for such limitations as the court may impose, a court order directing the office of mental health, a facility, or other individual or entity to seal records shall require the office of mental health, facility or other individual or entity to respond to any official or unofficial inquiry concerning a person's history of mental illness, whose records have been sealed, as though the admission or receipt of services documented in the sealed records had never occurred.
(4) A person who is the subject of an order directing that his or her records be sealed may respond to any official or unofficial inquiry by any person or agency concerning such person's history of mental illness as though the admission or receipt of services documented in the sealed records had never occurred.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date is authorized to be made on or before such effective date.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.