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<section article="ghg" article_name="Health - General" number="10-1403" title_number="10" title_name="Mental Health Law" subtitle_number="14" subtitle_name="Maryland Behavioral Health Crisis Response System">
  <level label="a">
    <text>The Crisis Response System shall include:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>A State 9–8–8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline in each jurisdiction or region to:</text>
      <level label="i">
        <text>Provide a single point of entry to the Crisis Response System;</text>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>Coordinate with the national 9–8–8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline to provide the full range of services provided by the national 9–8–8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, including:</text>
        <level label="1">
          <text>Supportive counseling;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="2">
          <text>Suicide prevention;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="3">
          <text>Crisis intervention;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="4">
          <text>Referrals to additional resources; and</text>
        </level>
        <level label="5">
          <text>Direct dispatch or warm hand–offs to mobile crisis response and stabilization services and other immediate services as needed;</text>
        </level>
      </level>
      <level label="iii">
        <text>Coordinate with the local core service agency or local behavioral health authority, police, 3–1–1, 2–1–1, or other local mental health hotlines, emergency medical service personnel, and behavioral health providers; and</text>
      </level>
      <level label="iv">
        <text>Provide other programs that may include:</text>
        <level label="1">
          <text>A clinical crisis telephone line for suicide prevention and crisis intervention;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="2">
          <text>A hotline for behavioral health information, referral, and assistance;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="3">
          <text>Clinical crisis walk–in services, including:</text>
        </level>
        <level label="A">
          <text>Triage for initial assessment;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="B">
          <text>Crisis stabilization until additional services are available;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="C">
          <text>Linkage to treatment services and family and peer support groups; and</text>
        </level>
        <level label="D">
          <text>Linkage to other health and human services programs;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="4">
          <text>Critical incident stress management teams, providing disaster behavioral health services, critical incident stress management, and an on–call system for these services;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="5">
          <text>Crisis residential beds to serve as an alternative to hospitalization;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="6">
          <text>A community crisis bed and hospital bed registry, including a daily tally of empty beds;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="7">
          <text>Transportation coordination, ensuring transportation of patients to urgent appointments or to emergency psychiatric facilities;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="8">
          <text>Mobile crisis teams;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="9">
          <text>23–hour holding beds;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="10">
          <text>Emergency psychiatric services;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="11">
          <text>Urgent care capacity;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="12">
          <text>Expanded capacity for assertive community treatment;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="13">
          <text>Crisis intervention teams with capacity to respond in each jurisdiction 24 hours a day and 7 days a week; and</text>
        </level>
        <level label="14">
          <text>Individualized family intervention teams;</text>
        </level>
      </level>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>Community awareness promotion and training programs; and</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>An evaluation of outcomes of services:</text>
      <level label="i">
        <text>In each jurisdiction or region, including an evaluation of:</text>
        <level label="1">
          <text>9–8–8 call, text, and chat volume;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="2">
          <text>9–8–8 local answer rate;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="3">
          <text>9–8–8 call, text, and chat resolution data, including:</text>
        </level>
        <level label="A">
          <text>The proportion of crises resolved by phone;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="B">
          <text>The proportion of crises resolved through mobile crisis team dispatch; and</text>
        </level>
        <level label="C">
          <text>The proportion of crises resolved by transfer to 9–1–1;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="4">
          <text>Mobile crisis team dispatch volume;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="5">
          <text>Mobile crisis team response time;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="6">
          <text>Mobile crisis team dispatch resolution data, including:</text>
        </level>
        <level label="A">
          <text>The proportion of crises resolved safely in the community; and</text>
        </level>
        <level label="B">
          <text>The proportion of crises resolved through transfer to a higher level of care;</text>
        </level>
        <level label="7">
          <text>Crisis stabilization center usage; and</text>
        </level>
        <level label="8">
          <text>Crisis stabilization center discharge data, including:</text>
        </level>
        <level label="A">
          <text>The proportion of crises resolved through a discharge to home; and</text>
        </level>
        <level label="B">
          <text>The proportion of crises resolved through a discharge to a higher level of care;</text>
        </level>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>Through data obtained from consumers and family members who have received services from the Crisis Response System collected through ongoing data collection from 9–8–8 call, text, and chat providers and other crisis providers that is reported annually; and</text>
      </level>
      <level label="iii">
        <text>Through annual crisis services data collection on the involvement of law enforcement, involuntary status of clients, and diversion from higher levels of care, including hospitals.</text>
      </level>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="b">
    <text>The data derived from the evaluation of outcomes of services required under subsection (a)(3) of this section shall be:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>Collected, analyzed, and publicly reported on or before December 1 each year, beginning in 2026;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>Disaggregated by race, gender, age, and zip code; and</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>Used to formulate policy recommendations with the goal of decreasing criminal detention and improving crisis diversion programs and linkages to effective community health services.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="c">
    <text>The Crisis Response System services shall be implemented as determined by the Administration in collaboration with the core service agency or local behavioral health authority serving each jurisdiction and community members of each jurisdiction.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="d">
    <text>An advance directive for mental health services under § 5–602.1 of this article shall apply to the delivery of services under this subtitle.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="e">
    <text>This subtitle may not be construed to affect petitions for emergency evaluations under § 10–622 of this title.</text>
  </level>
</section>
