BILL REQ. #: S-1441.2
| State of Washington | 62nd Legislature | 2011 Regular Session |
READ FIRST TIME 02/21/11.
AN ACT Relating to protecting consumers by assuring persons using the title of social worker have graduated with a degree in social work from an educational program accredited by the council on social work education; amending RCW 10.77.010, 13.34.260, 26.09.191, 26.10.160, 28A.170.080, 70.96A.037, 70.96B.010, 70.97.010, 70.126.020, 70.127.010, 71.32.020, 71.34.020, 74.13.029, and 74.34.020; reenacting and amending RCW 71.05.020 and 74.42.010; adding a new chapter to Title 18 RCW; and providing an effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1 (1) The legislature finds that:
(a) The practice of social work by persons in the public and
private sectors improves the lives of many people throughout the state
through the application of a broad spectrum of social sciences to
enhance the quality of life and develop the full potential of each
client;
(b) The practice of social work is a complex discipline that,
appropriately undertaken, can address client problems, needs, and
concerns, with the goal that clients achieve the maximum possible
enhancement of their quality of life and develop to their full
potential. However, improper assessment of client problems and needs
by unqualified persons can lead to client harm;
(c) It is in the state's interest to take steps to safeguard state
residents from misrepresentations about qualifications for practicing
social work. Because such misrepresentations could lead to the
improper practice of social work by unqualified persons, those who
represent themselves as social workers should have a qualifying degree
from an accredited and approved social work program.
(2) The legislature declares that this act to regulate social
workers constitutes an exercise of the state's police power to protect
and promote the health, safety, and welfare of the residents of the
state in general. Accordingly, while this act is intended to protect
the public generally, it does not create a duty owed by the state or
its instrumentalities to any individual or entity.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 2 (1) To address the goal of safeguarding
Washington residents from the unqualified or improper practice of
social work, a person may not represent himself or herself as a social
worker unless qualified as a social worker as defined in this section.
(2) For purposes of this section, "social worker" means a person
who meets one of the following qualifications:
(a) Is licensed under RCW 18.225.090(1)(a) or 18.225.145(1)(a); or
(b) Has graduated with at least a bachelor's degree from a social
work educational program accredited by the council on social work
education.
(3) A public agency or private entity doing business in Washington
may not use the title of social worker, or a form of the title, for
describing or designating volunteer or employment positions or within
contracts for services, reference materials, manuals, or other
documents, unless the volunteers or employees working in those
positions are qualified as a social worker as defined in this section.
(4) This section does not apply to:
(a) Persons employed in Washington on the effective date of this
section under the job title of social worker so long as the person
continues to be employed by the same agency on the effective date of
this section, and who, if employed by state government, shall continue
to have the same layoff, reversion, and promotional opportunities as
were available to the employee on the effective date of this section;
(b) Individuals employed by the government of the United States
while engaged in the performance of duties prescribed by the laws of
the United States; or
(c) Persons providing services as an educational staff associate
who are certified by the Washington professional educator standards
board. However, this section applies to a certified educational staff
associate providing services outside the school setting.
(5) As used in subsection (4) of this section, "agency" means any
private employer or any agency of state government.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 3 (1) The legislature finds that the practices
covered by this chapter are matters vitally affecting the public
interest for the purpose of applying the consumer protection act,
chapter 19.86 RCW. A violation of this chapter is not reasonable in
relation to the development and preservation of business and is an
unfair or deceptive act in trade or commerce and an unfair method of
competition for the purpose of applying the consumer protection act,
chapter 19.86 RCW.
(2) Remedies available under chapter 19.86 RCW for a violation of
this chapter do not affect any other remedy available under the law.
Sec. 4 RCW 10.77.010 and 2010 c 262 s 2 are each amended to read
as follows:
As used in this chapter:
(1) "Admission" means acceptance based on medical necessity, of a
person as a patient.
(2) "Commitment" means the determination by a court that a person
should be detained for a period of either evaluation or treatment, or
both, in an inpatient or a less-restrictive setting.
(3) "Conditional release" means modification of a court-ordered
commitment, which may be revoked upon violation of any of its terms.
(4) A "criminally insane" person means any person who has been
acquitted of a crime charged by reason of insanity, and thereupon found
to be a substantial danger to other persons or to present a substantial
likelihood of committing criminal acts jeopardizing public safety or
security unless kept under further control by the court or other
persons or institutions.
(5) "Department" means the state department of social and health
services.
(6) "Designated mental health professional" has the same meaning as
provided in RCW 71.05.020.
(7) "Detention" or "detain" means the lawful confinement of a
person, under the provisions of this chapter, pending evaluation.
(8) "Developmental disabilities professional" means a person who
has specialized training and three years of experience in directly
treating or working with persons with developmental disabilities and is
a psychiatrist or psychologist, or a social worker, and such other
developmental disabilities professionals as may be defined by rules
adopted by the secretary.
(9) "Developmental disability" means the condition as defined in
RCW 71A.10.020(3).
(10) "Discharge" means the termination of hospital medical
authority. The commitment may remain in place, be terminated, or be
amended by court order.
(11) "Furlough" means an authorized leave of absence for a resident
of a state institution operated by the department designated for the
custody, care, and treatment of the criminally insane, consistent with
an order of conditional release from the court under this chapter,
without any requirement that the resident be accompanied by, or be in
the custody of, any law enforcement or institutional staff, while on
such unescorted leave.
(12) "Habilitative services" means those services provided by
program personnel to assist persons in acquiring and maintaining life
skills and in raising their levels of physical, mental, social, and
vocational functioning. Habilitative services include education,
training for employment, and therapy. The habilitative process shall
be undertaken with recognition of the risk to the public safety
presented by the person being assisted as manifested by prior charged
criminal conduct.
(13) "History of one or more violent acts" means violent acts
committed during: (a) The ten-year period of time prior to the filing
of criminal charges; plus (b) the amount of time equal to time spent
during the ten-year period in a mental health facility or in
confinement as a result of a criminal conviction.
(14) "Immediate family member" means a spouse, child, stepchild,
parent, stepparent, grandparent, sibling, or domestic partner.
(15) "Incompetency" means a person lacks the capacity to understand
the nature of the proceedings against him or her or to assist in his or
her own defense as a result of mental disease or defect.
(16) "Indigent" means any person who is financially unable to
obtain counsel or other necessary expert or professional services
without causing substantial hardship to the person or his or her
family.
(17) "Individualized service plan" means a plan prepared by a
developmental disabilities professional with other professionals as a
team, for an individual with developmental disabilities, which shall
state:
(a) The nature of the person's specific problems, prior charged
criminal behavior, and habilitation needs;
(b) The conditions and strategies necessary to achieve the purposes
of habilitation;
(c) The intermediate and long-range goals of the habilitation
program, with a projected timetable for the attainment;
(d) The rationale for using this plan of habilitation to achieve
those intermediate and long-range goals;
(e) The staff responsible for carrying out the plan;
(f) Where relevant in light of past criminal behavior and due
consideration for public safety, the criteria for proposed movement to
less-restrictive settings, criteria for proposed eventual release, and
a projected possible date for release; and
(g) The type of residence immediately anticipated for the person
and possible future types of residences.
(18) "Professional person" means:
(a) A psychiatrist licensed as a physician and surgeon in this
state who has, in addition, completed three years of graduate training
in psychiatry in a program approved by the American medical association
or the American osteopathic association and is certified or eligible to
be certified by the American board of psychiatry and neurology or the
American osteopathic board of neurology and psychiatry;
(b) A psychologist licensed as a psychologist pursuant to chapter
18.83 RCW; or
(c) A social worker with a master's or further advanced degree from
((an accredited school of social work or a degree deemed equivalent
under rules adopted by the secretary)) a social work educational
program accredited and approved as provided in section 2 of this act.
(19) "Registration records" include all the records of the
department, regional support networks, treatment facilities, and other
persons providing services to the department, county departments, or
facilities which identify persons who are receiving or who at any time
have received services for mental illness.
(20) "Release" means legal termination of the court-ordered
commitment under the provisions of this chapter.
(21) "Secretary" means the secretary of the department of social
and health services or his or her designee.
(22) "Treatment" means any currently standardized medical or mental
health procedure including medication.
(23) "Treatment records" include registration and all other records
concerning persons who are receiving or who at any time have received
services for mental illness, which are maintained by the department, by
regional support networks and their staffs, and by treatment
facilities. Treatment records do not include notes or records
maintained for personal use by a person providing treatment services
for the department, regional support networks, or a treatment facility
if the notes or records are not available to others.
(24) "Violent act" means behavior that: (a)(i) Resulted in; (ii)
if completed as intended would have resulted in; or (iii) was
threatened to be carried out by a person who had the intent and
opportunity to carry out the threat and would have resulted in,
homicide, nonfatal injuries, or substantial damage to property; or (b)
recklessly creates an immediate risk of serious physical injury to
another person. As used in this subsection, "nonfatal injuries" means
physical pain or injury, illness, or an impairment of physical
condition. "Nonfatal injuries" shall be construed to be consistent
with the definition of "bodily injury," as defined in RCW 9A.04.110.
Sec. 5 RCW 13.34.260 and 2009 c 491 s 5 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) In an attempt to minimize the inherent intrusion in the lives
of families involved in the foster care system and to maintain parental
authority where appropriate, the department, absent good cause, shall
follow the wishes of the natural parent regarding the placement of the
child with a relative or other suitable person pursuant to RCW
13.34.130. Preferences such as family constellation, sibling
relationships, ethnicity, and religion shall be considered when
matching children to foster homes. Parental authority is appropriate
in areas that are not connected with the abuse or neglect that resulted
in the dependency and shall be integrated through the foster care team.
(2) When a child is placed in out-of-home care, relatives, other
suitable persons, and foster parents are encouraged to:
(a) Provide consultation to the foster care team based upon their
experience with the child placed in their care;
(b) Assist the birth parents by helping them understand their
child's needs and correlating appropriate parenting responses;
(c) Participate in educational activities, and enter into
community-building activities with birth families and other foster
families;
(d) Transport children to family time visits with birth families
and assist children and their families in maximizing the purposefulness
of family time.
(3) For purposes of this section((,)):
(a) "Foster care team" means the relative, other suitable person,
or foster parent currently providing care, the currently assigned
((social worker)) department employee, and the parent or parents; and
(b) "Birth family" means the persons described in RCW
74.15.020(2)(a).
Sec. 6 RCW 26.09.191 and 2007 c 496 s 303 are each amended to
read as follows:
(1) The permanent parenting plan shall not require mutual decision-making or designation of a dispute resolution process other than court
action if it is found that a parent has engaged in any of the following
conduct: (a) Willful abandonment that continues for an extended period
of time or substantial refusal to perform parenting functions; (b)
physical, sexual, or a pattern of emotional abuse of a child; or (c) a
history of acts of domestic violence as defined in RCW 26.50.010(1) or
an assault or sexual assault which causes grievous bodily harm or the
fear of such harm.
(2)(a) The parent's residential time with the child shall be
limited if it is found that the parent has engaged in any of the
following conduct: (i) Willful abandonment that continues for an
extended period of time or substantial refusal to perform parenting
functions; (ii) physical, sexual, or a pattern of emotional abuse of a
child; (iii) a history of acts of domestic violence as defined in RCW
26.50.010(1) or an assault or sexual assault which causes grievous
bodily harm or the fear of such harm; or (iv) the parent has been
convicted as an adult of a sex offense under:
(A) RCW 9A.44.076 if, because of the difference in age between the
offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists under (d) of
this subsection;
(B) RCW 9A.44.079 if, because of the difference in age between the
offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists under (d) of
this subsection;
(C) RCW 9A.44.086 if, because of the difference in age between the
offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists under (d) of
this subsection;
(D) RCW 9A.44.089;
(E) RCW 9A.44.093;
(F) RCW 9A.44.096;
(G) RCW 9A.64.020 (1) or (2) if, because of the difference in age
between the offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists
under (d) of this subsection;
(H) Chapter 9.68A RCW;
(I) Any predecessor or antecedent statute for the offenses listed
in (a)(iv)(A) through (H) of this subsection;
(J) Any statute from any other jurisdiction that describes an
offense analogous to the offenses listed in (a)(iv)(A) through (H) of
this subsection.
This subsection (2)(a) shall not apply when (c) or (d) of this
subsection applies.
(b) The parent's residential time with the child shall be limited
if it is found that the parent resides with a person who has engaged in
any of the following conduct: (i) Physical, sexual, or a pattern of
emotional abuse of a child; (ii) a history of acts of domestic violence
as defined in RCW 26.50.010(1) or an assault or sexual assault that
causes grievous bodily harm or the fear of such harm; or (iii) the
person has been convicted as an adult or as a juvenile has been
adjudicated of a sex offense under:
(A) RCW 9A.44.076 if, because of the difference in age between the
offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists under (e) of
this subsection;
(B) RCW 9A.44.079 if, because of the difference in age between the
offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists under (e) of
this subsection;
(C) RCW 9A.44.086 if, because of the difference in age between the
offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists under (e) of
this subsection;
(D) RCW 9A.44.089;
(E) RCW 9A.44.093;
(F) RCW 9A.44.096;
(G) RCW 9A.64.020 (1) or (2) if, because of the difference in age
between the offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists
under (e) of this subsection;
(H) Chapter 9.68A RCW;
(I) Any predecessor or antecedent statute for the offenses listed
in (b)(iii)(A) through (H) of this subsection;
(J) Any statute from any other jurisdiction that describes an
offense analogous to the offenses listed in (b)(iii)(A) through (H) of
this subsection.
This subsection (2)(b) shall not apply when (c) or (e) of this
subsection applies.
(c) If a parent has been found to be a sexual predator under
chapter 71.09 RCW or under an analogous statute of any other
jurisdiction, the court shall restrain the parent from contact with a
child that would otherwise be allowed under this chapter. If a parent
resides with an adult or a juvenile who has been found to be a sexual
predator under chapter 71.09 RCW or under an analogous statute of any
other jurisdiction, the court shall restrain the parent from contact
with the parent's child except contact that occurs outside that
person's presence.
(d) There is a rebuttable presumption that a parent who has been
convicted as an adult of a sex offense listed in (d)(i) through (ix) of
this subsection poses a present danger to a child. Unless the parent
rebuts this presumption, the court shall restrain the parent from
contact with a child that would otherwise be allowed under this
chapter:
(i) RCW 9A.64.020 (1) or (2), provided that the person convicted
was at least five years older than the other person;
(ii) RCW 9A.44.073;
(iii) RCW 9A.44.076, provided that the person convicted was at
least eight years older than the victim;
(iv) RCW 9A.44.079, provided that the person convicted was at least
eight years older than the victim;
(v) RCW 9A.44.083;
(vi) RCW 9A.44.086, provided that the person convicted was at least
eight years older than the victim;
(vii) RCW 9A.44.100;
(viii) Any predecessor or antecedent statute for the offenses
listed in (d)(i) through (vii) of this subsection;
(ix) Any statute from any other jurisdiction that describes an
offense analogous to the offenses listed in (d)(i) through (vii) of
this subsection.
(e) There is a rebuttable presumption that a parent who resides
with a person who, as an adult, has been convicted, or as a juvenile
has been adjudicated, of the sex offenses listed in (e)(i) through (ix)
of this subsection places a child at risk of abuse or harm when that
parent exercises residential time in the presence of the convicted or
adjudicated person. Unless the parent rebuts the presumption, the
court shall restrain the parent from contact with the parent's child
except for contact that occurs outside of the convicted or adjudicated
person's presence:
(i) RCW 9A.64.020 (1) or (2), provided that the person convicted
was at least five years older than the other person;
(ii) RCW 9A.44.073;
(iii) RCW 9A.44.076, provided that the person convicted was at
least eight years older than the victim;
(iv) RCW 9A.44.079, provided that the person convicted was at least
eight years older than the victim;
(v) RCW 9A.44.083;
(vi) RCW 9A.44.086, provided that the person convicted was at least
eight years older than the victim;
(vii) RCW 9A.44.100;
(viii) Any predecessor or antecedent statute for the offenses
listed in (e)(i) through (vii) of this subsection;
(ix) Any statute from any other jurisdiction that describes an
offense analogous to the offenses listed in (e)(i) through (vii) of
this subsection.
(f) The presumption established in (d) of this subsection may be
rebutted only after a written finding that:
(i) If the child was not the victim of the sex offense committed by
the parent requesting residential time, (A) contact between the child
and the offending parent is appropriate and poses minimal risk to the
child, and (B) the offending parent has successfully engaged in
treatment for sex offenders or is engaged in and making progress in
such treatment, if any was ordered by a court, and the treatment
provider believes such contact is appropriate and poses minimal risk to
the child; or
(ii) If the child was the victim of the sex offense committed by
the parent requesting residential time, (A) contact between the child
and the offending parent is appropriate and poses minimal risk to the
child, (B) if the child is in or has been in therapy for victims of
sexual abuse, the child's counselor believes such contact between the
child and the offending parent is in the child's best interest, and (C)
the offending parent has successfully engaged in treatment for sex
offenders or is engaged in and making progress in such treatment, if
any was ordered by a court, and the treatment provider believes such
contact is appropriate and poses minimal risk to the child.
(g) The presumption established in (e) of this subsection may be
rebutted only after a written finding that:
(i) If the child was not the victim of the sex offense committed by
the person who is residing with the parent requesting residential time,
(A) contact between the child and the parent residing with the
convicted or adjudicated person is appropriate and that parent is able
to protect the child in the presence of the convicted or adjudicated
person, and (B) the convicted or adjudicated person has successfully
engaged in treatment for sex offenders or is engaged in and making
progress in such treatment, if any was ordered by a court, and the
treatment provider believes such contact is appropriate and poses
minimal risk to the child; or
(ii) If the child was the victim of the sex offense committed by
the person who is residing with the parent requesting residential time,
(A) contact between the child and the parent in the presence of the
convicted or adjudicated person is appropriate and poses minimal risk
to the child, (B) if the child is in or has been in therapy for victims
of sexual abuse, the child's counselor believes such contact between
the child and the parent residing with the convicted or adjudicated
person in the presence of the convicted or adjudicated person is in the
child's best interest, and (C) the convicted or adjudicated person has
successfully engaged in treatment for sex offenders or is engaged in
and making progress in such treatment, if any was ordered by a court,
and the treatment provider believes contact between the parent and
child in the presence of the convicted or adjudicated person is
appropriate and poses minimal risk to the child.
(h) If the court finds that the parent has met the burden of
rebutting the presumption under (f) of this subsection, the court may
allow a parent who has been convicted as an adult of a sex offense
listed in (d)(i) through (ix) of this subsection to have residential
time with the child supervised by a neutral and independent adult and
pursuant to an adequate plan for supervision of such residential time.
The court shall not approve of a supervisor for contact between the
child and the parent unless the court finds, based on the evidence,
that the supervisor is willing and capable of protecting the child from
harm. The court shall revoke court approval of the supervisor upon
finding, based on the evidence, that the supervisor has failed to
protect the child or is no longer willing or capable of protecting the
child.
(i) If the court finds that the parent has met the burden of
rebutting the presumption under (g) of this subsection, the court may
allow a parent residing with a person who has been adjudicated as a
juvenile of a sex offense listed in (e)(i) through (ix) of this
subsection to have residential time with the child in the presence of
the person adjudicated as a juvenile, supervised by a neutral and
independent adult and pursuant to an adequate plan for supervision of
such residential time. The court shall not approve of a supervisor for
contact between the child and the parent unless the court finds, based
on the evidence, that the supervisor is willing and capable of
protecting the child from harm. The court shall revoke court approval
of the supervisor upon finding, based on the evidence, that the
supervisor has failed to protect the child or is no longer willing or
capable of protecting the child.
(j) If the court finds that the parent has met the burden of
rebutting the presumption under (g) of this subsection, the court may
allow a parent residing with a person who, as an adult, has been
convicted of a sex offense listed in (e)(i) through (ix) of this
subsection to have residential time with the child in the presence of
the convicted person supervised by a neutral and independent adult and
pursuant to an adequate plan for supervision of such residential time.
The court shall not approve of a supervisor for contact between the
child and the parent unless the court finds, based on the evidence,
that the supervisor is willing and capable of protecting the child from
harm. The court shall revoke court approval of the supervisor upon
finding, based on the evidence, that the supervisor has failed to
protect the child or is no longer willing or capable of protecting the
child.
(k) A court shall not order unsupervised contact between the
offending parent and a child of the offending parent who was sexually
abused by that parent. A court may order unsupervised contact between
the offending parent and a child who was not sexually abused by the
parent after the presumption under (d) of this subsection has been
rebutted and supervised residential time has occurred for at least two
years with no further arrests or convictions of sex offenses involving
children under chapter 9A.44 RCW, RCW 9A.64.020, or chapter 9.68A RCW
and (i) the sex offense of the offending parent was not committed
against a child of the offending parent, and (ii) the court finds that
unsupervised contact between the child and the offending parent is
appropriate and poses minimal risk to the child, after consideration of
the testimony of a state-certified therapist, mental health counselor,
or social worker with expertise in treating child sexual abuse victims
who has supervised at least one period of residential time between the
parent and the child, and after consideration of evidence of the
offending parent's compliance with community supervision requirements,
if any. If the offending parent was not ordered by a court to
participate in treatment for sex offenders, then the parent shall
obtain a psychosexual evaluation conducted by a certified sex offender
treatment provider or a certified affiliate sex offender treatment
provider indicating that the offender has the lowest likelihood of risk
to reoffend before the court grants unsupervised contact between the
parent and a child.
(l) A court may order unsupervised contact between the parent and
a child which may occur in the presence of a juvenile adjudicated of a
sex offense listed in (e)(i) through (ix) of this subsection who
resides with the parent after the presumption under (e) of this
subsection has been rebutted and supervised residential time has
occurred for at least two years during which time the adjudicated
juvenile has had no further arrests, adjudications, or convictions of
sex offenses involving children under chapter 9A.44 RCW, RCW 9A.64.020,
or chapter 9.68A RCW, and (i) the court finds that unsupervised contact
between the child and the parent that may occur in the presence of the
adjudicated juvenile is appropriate and poses minimal risk to the
child, after consideration of the testimony of a state-certified
therapist, mental health counselor, or social worker with expertise in
treatment of child sexual abuse victims who has supervised at least one
period of residential time between the parent and the child in the
presence of the adjudicated juvenile, and after consideration of
evidence of the adjudicated juvenile's compliance with community
supervision or parole requirements, if any. If the adjudicated
juvenile was not ordered by a court to participate in treatment for sex
offenders, then the adjudicated juvenile shall obtain a psychosexual
evaluation conducted by a certified sex offender treatment provider or
a certified affiliate sex offender treatment provider indicating that
the adjudicated juvenile has the lowest likelihood of risk to reoffend
before the court grants unsupervised contact between the parent and a
child which may occur in the presence of the adjudicated juvenile who
is residing with the parent.
(m)(i) The limitations imposed by the court under (a) or (b) of
this subsection shall be reasonably calculated to protect the child
from the physical, sexual, or emotional abuse or harm that could result
if the child has contact with the parent requesting residential time.
The limitations shall also be reasonably calculated to provide for the
safety of the parent who may be at risk of physical, sexual, or
emotional abuse or harm that could result if the parent has contact
with the parent requesting residential time. The limitations the court
may impose include, but are not limited to: Supervised contact between
the child and the parent or completion of relevant counseling or
treatment. If the court expressly finds based on the evidence that
limitations on the residential time with the child will not adequately
protect the child from the harm or abuse that could result if the child
has contact with the parent requesting residential time, the court
shall restrain the parent requesting residential time from all contact
with the child.
(ii) The court shall not enter an order under (a) of this
subsection allowing a parent to have contact with a child if the parent
has been found by clear and convincing evidence in a civil action or by
a preponderance of the evidence in a dependency action to have sexually
abused the child, except upon recommendation by an evaluator or
therapist for the child that the child is ready for contact with the
parent and will not be harmed by the contact. The court shall not
enter an order allowing a parent to have contact with the child in the
offender's presence if the parent resides with a person who has been
found by clear and convincing evidence in a civil action or by a
preponderance of the evidence in a dependency action to have sexually
abused a child, unless the court finds that the parent accepts that the
person engaged in the harmful conduct and the parent is willing to and
capable of protecting the child from harm from the person.
(iii) If the court limits residential time under (a) or (b) of this
subsection to require supervised contact between the child and the
parent, the court shall not approve of a supervisor for contact between
a child and a parent who has engaged in physical, sexual, or a pattern
of emotional abuse of the child unless the court finds based upon the
evidence that the supervisor accepts that the harmful conduct occurred
and is willing to and capable of protecting the child from harm. The
court shall revoke court approval of the supervisor upon finding, based
on the evidence, that the supervisor has failed to protect the child or
is no longer willing to or capable of protecting the child.
(n) If the court expressly finds based on the evidence that
contact between the parent and the child will not cause physical,
sexual, or emotional abuse or harm to the child and that the
probability that the parent's or other person's harmful or abusive
conduct will recur is so remote that it would not be in the child's
best interests to apply the limitations of (a), (b), and (m)(i) and
(iii) of this subsection, or if the court expressly finds that the
parent's conduct did not have an impact on the child, then the court
need not apply the limitations of (a), (b), and (m)(i) and (iii) of
this subsection. The weight given to the existence of a protection
order issued under chapter 26.50 RCW as to domestic violence is within
the discretion of the court. This subsection shall not apply when (c),
(d), (e), (f), (g), (h), (i), (j), (k), (l), and (m)(ii) of this
subsection apply.
(3) A parent's involvement or conduct may have an adverse effect on
the child's best interests, and the court may preclude or limit any
provisions of the parenting plan, if any of the following factors
exist:
(a) A parent's neglect or substantial nonperformance of parenting
functions;
(b) A long-term emotional or physical impairment which interferes
with the parent's performance of parenting functions as defined in RCW
26.09.004;
(c) A long-term impairment resulting from drug, alcohol, or other
substance abuse that interferes with the performance of parenting
functions;
(d) The absence or substantial impairment of emotional ties between
the parent and the child;
(e) The abusive use of conflict by the parent which creates the
danger of serious damage to the child's psychological development;
(f) A parent has withheld from the other parent access to the child
for a protracted period without good cause; or
(g) Such other factors or conduct as the court expressly finds
adverse to the best interests of the child.
(4) In cases involving allegations of limiting factors under
subsection (2)(a)(ii) and (iii) of this section, both parties shall be
screened to determine the appropriateness of a comprehensive assessment
regarding the impact of the limiting factor on the child and the
parties.
(5) In entering a permanent parenting plan, the court shall not
draw any presumptions from the provisions of the temporary parenting
plan.
(6) In determining whether any of the conduct described in this
section has occurred, the court shall apply the civil rules of
evidence, proof, and procedure.
(7) For the purposes of this section((,)):
(a) "A parent's child" means that parent's natural child, adopted
child, or stepchild; and
(b) "Social worker" means a person with a master's or further
advanced degree from a social work educational program accredited and
approved as provided in section 2 of this act.
Sec. 7 RCW 26.10.160 and 2004 c 38 s 13 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) A parent not granted custody of the child is entitled to
reasonable visitation rights except as provided in subsection (2) of
this section.
(2)(a) Visitation with the child shall be limited if it is found
that the parent seeking visitation has engaged in any of the following
conduct: (i) Willful abandonment that continues for an extended period
of time or substantial refusal to perform parenting functions; (ii)
physical, sexual, or a pattern of emotional abuse of a child; (iii) a
history of acts of domestic violence as defined in RCW 26.50.010(1) or
an assault or sexual assault which causes grievous bodily harm or the
fear of such harm; or (iv) the parent has been convicted as an adult of
a sex offense under:
(A) RCW 9A.44.076 if, because of the difference in age between the
offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists under (d) of
this subsection;
(B) RCW 9A.44.079 if, because of the difference in age between the
offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists under (d) of
this subsection;
(C) RCW 9A.44.086 if, because of the difference in age between the
offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists under (d) of
this subsection;
(D) RCW 9A.44.089;
(E) RCW 9A.44.093;
(F) RCW 9A.44.096;
(G) RCW 9A.64.020 (1) or (2) if, because of the difference in age
between the offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists
under (d) of this subsection;
(H) Chapter 9.68A RCW;
(I) Any predecessor or antecedent statute for the offenses listed
in (a)(iv)(A) through (H) of this subsection;
(J) Any statute from any other jurisdiction that describes an
offense analogous to the offenses listed in (a)(iv)(A) through (H) of
this subsection.
This subsection (2)(a) shall not apply when (c) or (d) of this
subsection applies.
(b) The parent's visitation with the child shall be limited if it
is found that the parent resides with a person who has engaged in any
of the following conduct: (i) Physical, sexual, or a pattern of
emotional abuse of a child; (ii) a history of acts of domestic violence
as defined in RCW 26.50.010(1) or an assault or sexual assault that
causes grievous bodily harm or the fear of such harm; or (iii) the
person has been convicted as an adult or as a juvenile has been
adjudicated of a sex offense under:
(A) RCW 9A.44.076 if, because of the difference in age between the
offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists under (e) of
this subsection;
(B) RCW 9A.44.079 if, because of the difference in age between the
offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists under (e) of
this subsection;
(C) RCW 9A.44.086 if, because of the difference in age between the
offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists under (e) of
this subsection;
(D) RCW 9A.44.089;
(E) RCW 9A.44.093;
(F) RCW 9A.44.096;
(G) RCW 9A.64.020 (1) or (2) if, because of the difference in age
between the offender and the victim, no rebuttable presumption exists
under (e) of this subsection;
(H) Chapter 9.68A RCW;
(I) Any predecessor or antecedent statute for the offenses listed
in (b)(iii)(A) through (H) of this subsection;
(J) Any statute from any other jurisdiction that describes an
offense analogous to the offenses listed in (b)(iii)(A) through (H) of
this subsection.
This subsection (2)(b) shall not apply when (c) or (e) of this
subsection applies.
(c) If a parent has been found to be a sexual predator under
chapter 71.09 RCW or under an analogous statute of any other
jurisdiction, the court shall restrain the parent from contact with a
child that would otherwise be allowed under this chapter. If a parent
resides with an adult or a juvenile who has been found to be a sexual
predator under chapter 71.09 RCW or under an analogous statute of any
other jurisdiction, the court shall restrain the parent from contact
with the parent's child except contact that occurs outside that
person's presence.
(d) There is a rebuttable presumption that a parent who has been
convicted as an adult of a sex offense listed in (d)(i) through (ix) of
this subsection poses a present danger to a child. Unless the parent
rebuts this presumption, the court shall restrain the parent from
contact with a child that would otherwise be allowed under this
chapter:
(i) RCW 9A.64.020 (1) or (2), provided that the person convicted
was at least five years older than the other person;
(ii) RCW 9A.44.073;
(iii) RCW 9A.44.076, provided that the person convicted was at
least eight years older than the victim;
(iv) RCW 9A.44.079, provided that the person convicted was at least
eight years older than the victim;
(v) RCW 9A.44.083;
(vi) RCW 9A.44.086, provided that the person convicted was at least
eight years older than the victim;
(vii) RCW 9A.44.100;
(viii) Any predecessor or antecedent statute for the offenses
listed in (d)(i) through (vii) of this subsection;
(ix) Any statute from any other jurisdiction that describes an
offense analogous to the offenses listed in (d)(i) through (vii) of
this subsection.
(e) There is a rebuttable presumption that a parent who resides
with a person who, as an adult, has been convicted, or as a juvenile
has been adjudicated, of the sex offenses listed in (e)(i) through (ix)
of this subsection places a child at risk of abuse or harm when that
parent exercises visitation in the presence of the convicted or
adjudicated person. Unless the parent rebuts the presumption, the
court shall restrain the parent from contact with the parent's child
except for contact that occurs outside of the convicted or adjudicated
person's presence:
(i) RCW 9A.64.020 (1) or (2), provided that the person convicted
was at least five years older than the other person;
(ii) RCW 9A.44.073;
(iii) RCW 9A.44.076, provided that the person convicted was at
least eight years older than the victim;
(iv) RCW 9A.44.079, provided that the person convicted was at least
eight years older than the victim;
(v) RCW 9A.44.083;
(vi) RCW 9A.44.086, provided that the person convicted was at least
eight years older than the victim;
(vii) RCW 9A.44.100;
(viii) Any predecessor or antecedent statute for the offenses
listed in (e)(i) through (vii) of this subsection;
(ix) Any statute from any other jurisdiction that describes an
offense analogous to the offenses listed in (e)(i) through (vii) of
this subsection.
(f) The presumption established in (d) of this subsection may be
rebutted only after a written finding that:
(i) If the child was not the victim of the sex offense committed by
the parent requesting visitation, (A) contact between the child and the
offending parent is appropriate and poses minimal risk to the child,
and (B) the offending parent has successfully engaged in treatment for
sex offenders or is engaged in and making progress in such treatment,
if any was ordered by a court, and the treatment provider believes such
contact is appropriate and poses minimal risk to the child; or
(ii) If the child was the victim of the sex offense committed by
the parent requesting visitation, (A) contact between the child and the
offending parent is appropriate and poses minimal risk to the child,
(B) if the child is in or has been in therapy for victims of sexual
abuse, the child's counselor believes such contact between the child
and the offending parent is in the child's best interest, and (C) the
offending parent has successfully engaged in treatment for sex
offenders or is engaged in and making progress in such treatment, if
any was ordered by a court, and the treatment provider believes such
contact is appropriate and poses minimal risk to the child.
(g) The presumption established in (e) of this subsection may be
rebutted only after a written finding that:
(i) If the child was not the victim of the sex offense committed by
the person who is residing with the parent requesting visitation, (A)
contact between the child and the parent residing with the convicted or
adjudicated person is appropriate and that parent is able to protect
the child in the presence of the convicted or adjudicated person, and
(B) the convicted or adjudicated person has successfully engaged in
treatment for sex offenders or is engaged in and making progress in
such treatment, if any was ordered by a court, and the treatment
provider believes such contact is appropriate and poses minimal risk to
the child; or
(ii) If the child was the victim of the sex offense committed by
the person who is residing with the parent requesting visitation, (A)
contact between the child and the parent in the presence of the
convicted or adjudicated person is appropriate and poses minimal risk
to the child, (B) if the child is in or has been in therapy for victims
of sexual abuse, the child's counselor believes such contact between
the child and the parent residing with the convicted or adjudicated
person in the presence of the convicted or adjudicated person is in the
child's best interest, and (C) the convicted or adjudicated person has
successfully engaged in treatment for sex offenders or is engaged in
and making progress in such treatment, if any was ordered by a court,
and the treatment provider believes contact between the parent and
child in the presence of the convicted or adjudicated person is
appropriate and poses minimal risk to the child.
(h) If the court finds that the parent has met the burden of
rebutting the presumption under (f) of this subsection, the court may
allow a parent who has been convicted as an adult of a sex offense
listed in (d)(i) through (ix) of this subsection to have visitation
with the child supervised by a neutral and independent adult and
pursuant to an adequate plan for supervision of such visitation. The
court shall not approve of a supervisor for contact between the child
and the parent unless the court finds, based on the evidence, that the
supervisor is willing and capable of protecting the child from harm.
The court shall revoke court approval of the supervisor upon finding,
based on the evidence, that the supervisor has failed to protect the
child or is no longer willing or capable of protecting the child.
(i) If the court finds that the parent has met the burden of
rebutting the presumption under (g) of this subsection, the court may
allow a parent residing with a person who has been adjudicated as a
juvenile of a sex offense listed in (e)(i) through (ix) of this
subsection to have visitation with the child in the presence of the
person adjudicated as a juvenile, supervised by a neutral and
independent adult and pursuant to an adequate plan for supervision of
such visitation. The court shall not approve of a supervisor for
contact between the child and the parent unless the court finds, based
on the evidence, that the supervisor is willing and capable of
protecting the child from harm. The court shall revoke court approval
of the supervisor upon finding, based on the evidence, that the
supervisor has failed to protect the child or is no longer willing or
capable of protecting the child.
(j) If the court finds that the parent has met the burden of
rebutting the presumption under (g) of this subsection, the court may
allow a parent residing with a person who, as an adult, has been
convicted of a sex offense listed in (e)(i) through (ix) of this
subsection to have visitation with the child in the presence of the
convicted person supervised by a neutral and independent adult and
pursuant to an adequate plan for supervision of such visitation. The
court shall not approve of a supervisor for contact between the child
and the parent unless the court finds, based on the evidence, that the
supervisor is willing and capable of protecting the child from harm.
The court shall revoke court approval of the supervisor upon finding,
based on the evidence, that the supervisor has failed to protect the
child or is no longer willing or capable of protecting the child.
(k) A court shall not order unsupervised contact between the
offending parent and a child of the offending parent who was sexually
abused by that parent. A court may order unsupervised contact between
the offending parent and a child who was not sexually abused by the
parent after the presumption under (d) of this subsection has been
rebutted and supervised visitation has occurred for at least two years
with no further arrests or convictions of sex offenses involving
children under chapter 9A.44 RCW, RCW 9A.64.020, or chapter 9.68A RCW
and (i) the sex offense of the offending parent was not committed
against a child of the offending parent, and (ii) the court finds that
unsupervised contact between the child and the offending parent is
appropriate and poses minimal risk to the child, after consideration of
the testimony of a state-certified therapist, mental health counselor,
or social worker with expertise in treating child sexual abuse victims
who has supervised at least one period of visitation between the parent
and the child, and after consideration of evidence of the offending
parent's compliance with community supervision requirements, if any.
If the offending parent was not ordered by a court to participate in
treatment for sex offenders, then the parent shall obtain a
psychosexual evaluation conducted by a certified sex offender treatment
provider or a certified affiliate sex offender treatment provider
indicating that the offender has the lowest likelihood of risk to
reoffend before the court grants unsupervised contact between the
parent and a child.
(l) A court may order unsupervised contact between the parent and
a child which may occur in the presence of a juvenile adjudicated of a
sex offense listed in (e)(i) through (ix) of this subsection who
resides with the parent after the presumption under (e) of this
subsection has been rebutted and supervised visitation has occurred for
at least two years during which time the adjudicated juvenile has had
no further arrests, adjudications, or convictions of sex offenses
involving children under chapter 9A.44 RCW, RCW 9A.64.020, or chapter
9.68A RCW, and (i) the court finds that unsupervised contact between
the child and the parent that may occur in the presence of the
adjudicated juvenile is appropriate and poses minimal risk to the
child, after consideration of the testimony of a state-certified
therapist, mental health counselor, or social worker with expertise in
treatment of child sexual abuse victims who has supervised at least one
period of visitation between the parent and the child in the presence
of the adjudicated juvenile, and after consideration of evidence of the
adjudicated juvenile's compliance with community supervision or parole
requirements, if any. If the adjudicated juvenile was not ordered by
a court to participate in treatment for sex offenders, then the
adjudicated juvenile shall obtain a psychosexual evaluation conducted
by a certified sex offender treatment provider or a certified affiliate
sex offender treatment provider indicating that the adjudicated
juvenile has the lowest likelihood of risk to reoffend before the court
grants unsupervised contact between the parent and a child which may
occur in the presence of the adjudicated juvenile who is residing with
the parent.
(m)(i) The limitations imposed by the court under (a) or (b) of
this subsection shall be reasonably calculated to protect the child
from the physical, sexual, or emotional abuse or harm that could result
if the child has contact with the parent requesting visitation. If the
court expressly finds based on the evidence that limitations on
visitation with the child will not adequately protect the child from
the harm or abuse that could result if the child has contact with the
parent requesting visitation, the court shall restrain the person
seeking visitation from all contact with the child.
(ii) The court shall not enter an order under (a) of this
subsection allowing a parent to have contact with a child if the parent
has been found by clear and convincing evidence in a civil action or by
a preponderance of the evidence in a dependency action to have sexually
abused the child, except upon recommendation by an evaluator or
therapist for the child that the child is ready for contact with the
parent and will not be harmed by the contact. The court shall not
enter an order allowing a parent to have contact with the child in the
offender's presence if the parent resides with a person who has been
found by clear and convincing evidence in a civil action or by a
preponderance of the evidence in a dependency action to have sexually
abused a child, unless the court finds that the parent accepts that the
person engaged in the harmful conduct and the parent is willing to and
capable of protecting the child from harm from the person.
(iii) If the court limits visitation under (a) or (b) of this
subsection to require supervised contact between the child and the
parent, the court shall not approve of a supervisor for contact between
a child and a parent who has engaged in physical, sexual, or a pattern
of emotional abuse of the child unless the court finds based upon the
evidence that the supervisor accepts that the harmful conduct occurred
and is willing to and capable of protecting the child from harm. The
court shall revoke court approval of the supervisor upon finding, based
on the evidence, that the supervisor has failed to protect the child or
is no longer willing to or capable of protecting the child.
(n) If the court expressly finds based on the evidence that
contact between the parent and the child will not cause physical,
sexual, or emotional abuse or harm to the child and that the
probability that the parent's or other person's harmful or abusive
conduct will recur is so remote that it would not be in the child's
best interests to apply the limitations of (a), (b), and (m)(i) and
(iii) of this subsection, or if the court expressly finds that the
parent's conduct did not have an impact on the child, then the court
need not apply the limitations of (a), (b), and (m)(i) and (iii) of
this subsection. The weight given to the existence of a protection
order issued under chapter 26.50 RCW as to domestic violence is within
the discretion of the court. This subsection shall not apply when (c),
(d), (e), (f), (g), (h), (i), (j), (k), (l), and (m)(ii) of this
subsection apply.
(3) Any person may petition the court for visitation rights at any
time including, but not limited to, custody proceedings. The court may
order visitation rights for any person when visitation may serve the
best interest of the child whether or not there has been any change of
circumstances.
(4) The court may modify an order granting or denying visitation
rights whenever modification would serve the best interests of the
child. Modification of a parent's visitation rights shall be subject
to the requirements of subsection (2) of this section.
(5) For the purposes of this section((,)):
(a) "A parent's child" means that parent's natural child, adopted
child, or stepchild; and
(b) "Social worker" means a person with a master's or further
advanced degree from a social work educational program accredited and
approved as provided in section 2 of this act.
Sec. 8 RCW 28A.170.080 and 2005 c 497 s 213 are each amended to
read as follows:
(1) Grants provided under RCW 28A.170.090 may be used solely for
services provided by a substance abuse intervention specialist or for
dedicated staff time for counseling and intervention services provided
by any school district certificated employee who has been trained by
and has access to consultation with a substance abuse intervention
specialist. Services shall be directed at assisting students in
kindergarten through twelfth grade in overcoming problems of drug and
alcohol abuse, and in preventing abuse and addiction to such
substances, including nicotine. The grants shall require local
matching funds so that the grant amounts support a maximum of eighty
percent of the costs of the services funded. The services of a
substance abuse intervention specialist may be obtained by means of a
contract with a state or community services agency or a drug treatment
center. Services provided by a substance abuse intervention specialist
may include:
(a) Individual and family counseling, including preventive
counseling;
(b) Assessment and referral for treatment;
(c) Referral to peer support groups;
(d) Aftercare;
(e) Development and supervision of student mentor programs;
(f) Staff training, including training in the identification of
high-risk children and effective interaction with those children in the
classroom; and
(g) Development and coordination of school drug and alcohol core
teams, involving staff, students, parents, and community members.
(2) For the purposes of this section, "substance abuse intervention
specialist" means any one of the following, except that diagnosis and
assessment, counseling and aftercare specifically identified with
treatment of chemical dependency shall be performed only by personnel
who meet the same qualifications as are required of a qualified
chemical dependency counselor employed by an alcoholism or drug
treatment program approved by the department of social and health
services.
(a) An educational staff associate employed by a school district or
educational service district who holds certification as a school
counselor, school psychologist, school nurse, or school social worker
under Washington professional educator standards board rules adopted
pursuant to RCW 28A.410.210;
(b) An individual who meets the definition of a qualified drug or
alcohol counselor established by the bureau of alcohol and substance
abuse;
(c) A ((counselor, social worker, or other)) qualified professional
employed by the department of social and health services;
(d) A psychologist licensed under chapter 18.83 RCW; or
(e) A children's mental health specialist as defined in RCW
71.34.020.
Sec. 9 RCW 70.96A.037 and 2009 c 579 s 1 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) The department of social and health services shall contract for
chemical dependency specialist services at division of children and
family services offices to enhance the timeliness and quality of child
protective services assessments and to better connect families to
needed treatment services.
(2) The chemical dependency specialist's duties may include, but
are not limited to: Conducting on-site chemical dependency screening
and assessment, facilitating progress reports to department ((social
workers)) employees, in-service training of department ((social
workers)) employees and staff on substance abuse issues, referring
clients from the department to treatment providers, and providing
consultation on cases to department ((social workers)) employees.
(3) The department of social and health services shall provide
training in and ensure that each case-carrying ((social worker))
employee is trained in uniform screening for mental health and chemical
dependency.
Sec. 10 RCW 70.96B.010 and 2008 c 320 s 3 are each amended to
read as follows:
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter
unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(1) "Admission" or "admit" means a decision by a physician that a
person should be examined or treated as a patient in a hospital, an
evaluation and treatment facility, or other inpatient facility, or a
decision by a professional person in charge or his or her designee that
a person should be detained as a patient for evaluation and treatment
in a secure detoxification facility or other certified chemical
dependency provider.
(2) "Antipsychotic medications" means that class of drugs primarily
used to treat serious manifestations of mental illness associated with
thought disorders, which includes but is not limited to atypical
antipsychotic medications.
(3) "Approved treatment program" means a discrete program of
chemical dependency treatment provided by a treatment program certified
by the department as meeting standards adopted under chapter 70.96A
RCW.
(4) "Attending staff" means any person on the staff of a public or
private agency having responsibility for the care and treatment of a
patient.
(5) "Chemical dependency" means:
(a) Alcoholism;
(b) Drug addiction; or
(c) Dependence on alcohol and one or more other psychoactive
chemicals, as the context requires.
(6) "Chemical dependency professional" means a person certified as
a chemical dependency professional by the department of health under
chapter 18.205 RCW.
(7) "Commitment" means the determination by a court that a person
should be detained for a period of either evaluation or treatment, or
both, in an inpatient or a less restrictive setting.
(8) "Conditional release" means a revocable modification of a
commitment that may be revoked upon violation of any of its terms.
(9) "Custody" means involuntary detention under either chapter
71.05 or 70.96A RCW or this chapter, uninterrupted by any period of
unconditional release from commitment from a facility providing
involuntary care and treatment.
(10) "Department" means the department of social and health
services.
(11) "Designated chemical dependency specialist" or "specialist"
means a person designated by the county alcoholism and other drug
addiction program coordinator designated under RCW 70.96A.310 to
perform the commitment duties described in RCW 70.96A.140 and this
chapter, and qualified to do so by meeting standards adopted by the
department.
(12) "Designated crisis responder" means a person designated by the
county or regional support network to perform the duties specified in
this chapter.
(13) "Designated mental health professional" means a mental health
professional designated by the county or other authority authorized in
rule to perform the duties specified in this chapter.
(14) "Detention" or "detain" means the lawful confinement of a
person under this chapter, or chapter 70.96A or 71.05 RCW.
(15) "Developmental disabilities professional" means a person who
has specialized training and three years of experience in directly
treating or working with individuals with developmental disabilities
and is a psychiatrist, psychologist, or social worker, and such other
developmental disabilities professionals as may be defined by rules
adopted by the secretary.
(16) "Developmental disability" means that condition defined in RCW
71A.10.020.
(17) "Discharge" means the termination of facility authority. The
commitment may remain in place, be terminated, or be amended by court
order.
(18) "Evaluation and treatment facility" means any facility that
can provide directly, or by direct arrangement with other public or
private agencies, emergency evaluation and treatment, outpatient care,
and timely and appropriate inpatient care to persons suffering from a
mental disorder, and that is certified as such by the department. A
physically separate and separately operated portion of a state hospital
may be designated as an evaluation and treatment facility. A facility
that is part of, or operated by, the department or any federal agency
does not require certification. No correctional institution or
facility, or jail, may be an evaluation and treatment facility within
the meaning of this chapter.
(19) "Facility" means either an evaluation and treatment facility
or a secure detoxification facility.
(20) "Gravely disabled" means a condition in which a person, as a
result of a mental disorder, or as a result of the use of alcohol or
other psychoactive chemicals:
(a) Is in danger of serious physical harm resulting from a failure
to provide for his or her essential human needs of health or safety; or
(b) Manifests severe deterioration in routine functioning evidenced
by repeated and escalating loss of cognitive or volitional control over
his or her actions and is not receiving such care as is essential for
his or her health or safety.
(21) "History of one or more violent acts" refers to the period of
time ten years before the filing of a petition under this chapter, or
chapter 70.96A or 71.05 RCW, excluding any time spent, but not any
violent acts committed, in a mental health facility or a long-term
alcoholism or drug treatment facility, or in confinement as a result of
a criminal conviction.
(22) "Imminent" means the state or condition of being likely to
occur at any moment or near at hand, rather than distant or remote.
(23) "Intoxicated person" means a person whose mental or physical
functioning is substantially impaired as a result of the use of alcohol
or other psychoactive chemicals.
(24) "Judicial commitment" means a commitment by a court under this
chapter.
(25) "Licensed physician" means a person licensed to practice
medicine or osteopathic medicine and surgery in the state of
Washington.
(26) "Likelihood of serious harm" means:
(a) A substantial risk that:
(i) Physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon his or her own
person, as evidenced by threats or attempts to commit suicide or
inflict physical harm on oneself;
(ii) Physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon another, as
evidenced by behavior that has caused such harm or that places another
person or persons in reasonable fear of sustaining such harm; or
(iii) Physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon the property
of others, as evidenced by behavior that has caused substantial loss or
damage to the property of others; or
(b) The person has threatened the physical safety of another and
has a history of one or more violent acts.
(27) "Mental disorder" means any organic, mental, or emotional
impairment that has substantial adverse effects on a person's cognitive
or volitional functions.
(28) "Mental health professional" means a psychiatrist,
psychologist, psychiatric nurse, or social worker, and such other
mental health professionals as may be defined by rules adopted by the
secretary under the authority of chapter 71.05 RCW.
(29) "Peace officer" means a law enforcement official of a public
agency or governmental unit, and includes persons specifically given
peace officer powers by any state law, local ordinance, or judicial
order of appointment.
(30) "Person in charge" means a physician or chemical dependency
counselor as defined in rule by the department, who is empowered by a
certified treatment program with authority to make assessment,
admission, continuing care, and discharge decisions on behalf of the
certified program.
(31) "Private agency" means any person, partnership, corporation,
or association that is not a public agency, whether or not financed in
whole or in part by public funds, that constitutes an evaluation and
treatment facility or private institution, or hospital, or approved
treatment program, that is conducted for, or includes a department or
ward conducted for, the care and treatment of persons who are mentally
ill and/or chemically dependent.
(32) "Professional person" means a mental health professional or
chemical dependency professional and shall also mean a physician,
registered nurse, and such others as may be defined by rules adopted by
the secretary pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
(33) "Psychiatrist" means a person having a license as a physician
and surgeon in this state who has in addition completed three years of
graduate training in psychiatry in a program approved by the American
medical association or the American osteopathic association and is
certified or eligible to be certified by the American board of
psychiatry and neurology.
(34) "Psychologist" means a person who has been licensed as a
psychologist under chapter 18.83 RCW.
(35) "Public agency" means any evaluation and treatment facility or
institution, or hospital, or approved treatment program that is
conducted for, or includes a department or ward conducted for, the care
and treatment of persons who are mentally ill and/or chemically
dependent, if the agency is operated directly by federal, state,
county, or municipal government, or a combination of such governments.
(36) "Registration records" means all the records of the
department, regional support networks, treatment facilities, and other
persons providing services to the department, county departments, or
facilities which identify persons who are receiving or who at any time
have received services for mental illness.
(37) "Release" means legal termination of the commitment under
chapter 70.96A or 71.05 RCW or this chapter.
(38) "Secretary" means the secretary of the department or the
secretary's designee.
(39) "Secure detoxification facility" means a facility operated by
either a public or private agency or by the program of an agency that
serves the purpose of providing evaluation and assessment, and acute
and/or subacute detoxification services for intoxicated persons and
includes security measures sufficient to protect the patients, staff,
and community.
(40) "Social worker" means a person with a master's or further
advanced degree from ((an accredited school of social work or a degree
deemed equivalent under rules adopted by the secretary)) a social work
educational program accredited and approved as provided in section 2 of
this act.
(41) "Treatment records" means registration records and all other
records concerning persons who are receiving or who at any time have
received services for mental illness, which are maintained by the
department, by regional support networks and their staffs, and by
treatment facilities. Treatment records do not include notes or
records maintained for personal use by a person providing treatment
services for the department, regional support networks, or a treatment
facility if the notes or records are not available to others.
(42) "Violent act" means behavior that resulted in homicide,
attempted suicide, nonfatal injuries, or substantial damage to
property.
Sec. 11 RCW 70.97.010 and 2005 c 504 s 403 are each amended to
read as follows:
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter
unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(1) "Antipsychotic medications" means that class of drugs primarily
used to treat serious manifestations of mental illness associated with
thought disorders, which includes but is not limited to atypical
antipsychotic medications.
(2) "Attending staff" means any person on the staff of a public or
private agency having responsibility for the care and treatment of a
patient.
(3) "Chemical dependency" means alcoholism, drug addiction, or
dependence on alcohol and one or more other psychoactive chemicals, as
the context requires and as those terms are defined in chapter 70.96A
RCW.
(4) "Chemical dependency professional" means a person certified as
a chemical dependency professional by the department of health under
chapter 18.205 RCW.
(5) "Commitment" means the determination by a court that an
individual should be detained for a period of either evaluation or
treatment, or both, in an inpatient or a less restrictive setting.
(6) "Conditional release" means a modification of a commitment that
may be revoked upon violation of any of its terms.
(7) "Custody" means involuntary detention under chapter 71.05 or
70.96A RCW, uninterrupted by any period of unconditional release from
commitment from a facility providing involuntary care and treatment.
(8) "Department" means the department of social and health
services.
(9) "Designated responder" means a designated mental health
professional, a designated chemical dependency specialist, or a
designated crisis responder as those terms are defined in chapter
70.96A, 71.05, or 70.96B RCW.
(10) "Detention" or "detain" means the lawful confinement of an
individual under chapter 70.96A or 71.05 RCW.
(11) "Discharge" means the termination of facility authority. The
commitment may remain in place, be terminated, or be amended by court
order.
(12) "Enhanced services facility" means a facility that provides
treatment and services to persons for whom acute inpatient treatment is
not medically necessary and who have been determined by the department
to be inappropriate for placement in other licensed facilities due to
the complex needs that result in behavioral and security issues.
(13) "Expanded community services program" means a nonsecure
program of enhanced behavioral and residential support provided to
long-term and residential care providers serving specifically eligible
clients who would otherwise be at risk for hospitalization at state
hospital geriatric units.
(14) "Facility" means an enhanced services facility.
(15) "Gravely disabled" means a condition in which an individual,
as a result of a mental disorder, as a result of the use of alcohol or
other psychoactive chemicals, or both:
(a) Is in danger of serious physical harm resulting from a failure
to provide for his or her essential human needs of health or safety; or
(b) Manifests severe deterioration in routine functioning evidenced
by repeated and escalating loss of cognitive or volitional control over
his or her actions and is not receiving such care as is essential for
his or her health or safety.
(16) "History of one or more violent acts" refers to the period of
time ten years before the filing of a petition under this chapter, or
chapter 70.96A or 71.05 RCW, excluding any time spent, but not any
violent acts committed, in a mental health facility or a long-term
alcoholism or drug treatment facility, or in confinement as a result of
a criminal conviction.
(17) "Licensed physician" means a person licensed to practice
medicine or osteopathic medicine and surgery in the state of
Washington.
(18) "Likelihood of serious harm" means:
(a) A substantial risk that:
(i) Physical harm will be inflicted by an individual upon his or
her own person, as evidenced by threats or attempts to commit suicide
or inflict physical harm on oneself;
(ii) Physical harm will be inflicted by an individual upon another,
as evidenced by behavior that has caused such harm or that places
another person or persons in reasonable fear of sustaining such harm;
or
(iii) Physical harm will be inflicted by an individual upon the
property of others, as evidenced by behavior that has caused
substantial loss or damage to the property of others; or
(b) The individual has threatened the physical safety of another
and has a history of one or more violent acts.
(19) "Mental disorder" means any organic, mental, or emotional
impairment that has substantial adverse effects on an individual's
cognitive or volitional functions.
(20) "Mental health professional" means a psychiatrist,
psychologist, psychiatric nurse, or social worker, and such other
mental health professionals as may be defined by rules adopted by the
secretary under the authority of chapter 71.05 RCW.
(21) "Professional person" means a mental health professional and
also means a physician, registered nurse, and such others as may be
defined in rules adopted by the secretary pursuant to the provisions of
this chapter.
(22) "Psychiatrist" means a person having a license as a physician
and surgeon in this state who has in addition completed three years of
graduate training in psychiatry in a program approved by the American
medical association or the American osteopathic association and is
certified or eligible to be certified by the American board of
psychiatry and neurology.
(23) "Psychologist" means a person who has been licensed as a
psychologist under chapter 18.83 RCW.
(24) "Registration records" include all the records of the
department, regional support networks, treatment facilities, and other
persons providing services to the department, county departments, or
facilities which identify individuals who are receiving or who at any
time have received services for mental illness.
(25) "Release" means legal termination of the commitment under
chapter 70.96A or 71.05 RCW.
(26) "Resident" means a person admitted to an enhanced services
facility.
(27) "Secretary" means the secretary of the department or the
secretary's designee.
(28) "Significant change" means:
(a) A deterioration in a resident's physical, mental, or
psychosocial condition that has caused or is likely to cause clinical
complications or life-threatening conditions; or
(b) An improvement in the resident's physical, mental, or
psychosocial condition that may make the resident eligible for release
or for treatment in a less intensive or less secure setting.
(29) "Social worker" means a person with a master's or further
advanced degree from ((an accredited school of social work or a degree
deemed equivalent under rules adopted by the secretary)) a social work
educational program accredited and approved as provided in section 2 of
this act.
(30) "Treatment" means the broad range of emergency,
detoxification, residential, inpatient, and outpatient services and
care, including diagnostic evaluation, mental health or chemical
dependency education and counseling, medical, psychiatric,
psychological, and social service care, vocational rehabilitation, and
career counseling, which may be extended to persons with mental
disorders, chemical dependency disorders, or both, and their families.
(31) "Treatment records" include registration and all other records
concerning individuals who are receiving or who at any time have
received services for mental illness, which are maintained by the
department, by regional support networks and their staffs, and by
treatment facilities. "Treatment records" do not include notes or
records maintained for personal use by an individual providing
treatment services for the department, regional support networks, or a
treatment facility if the notes or records are not available to others.
(32) "Violent act" means behavior that resulted in homicide,
attempted suicide, nonfatal injuries, or substantial damage to
property.
Sec. 12 RCW 70.126.020 and 1984 c 22 s 5 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) Home health care shall be provided by a home health agency and
shall:
(a) Be delivered by a registered nurse, physical therapist,
occupational therapist, speech therapist, or home health aide on a
part-time or intermittent basis;
(b) Include, as applicable under the written plan, supplies and
equipment such as:
(i) Drugs and medicines that are legally obtainable only upon a
physician's written prescription, and insulin;
(ii) Rental of durable medical apparatus and medical equipment such
as wheelchairs, hospital beds, respirators, splints, trusses, braces,
or crutches needed for treatment;
(iii) Supplies normally used for hospital inpatients and dispensed
by the home health agency such as oxygen, catheters, needles, syringes,
dressings, materials used in aseptic techniques, irrigation solutions,
and intravenous fluids.
(2) The following services may be included when medically
necessary, ordered by the attending physician, and included in the
approved plan of treatment:
(a) Licensed practical nurses;
(b) Respiratory therapists;
(c) Social workers holding a master's degree or further advanced
degree from a social work educational program accredited and approved
as provided in section 2 of this act;
(d) Ambulance service that is certified by the physician as
necessary in the approved plan of treatment because of the patient's
physical condition or for unexpected emergency situations.
(3) Services not included in home health care include:
(a) Nonmedical, custodial, or housekeeping services except by home
health aides as ordered in the approved plan of treatment;
(b) "Meals on Wheels" or similar food services;
(c) Nutritional guidance;
(d) Services performed by family members;
(e) Services not included in an approved plan of treatment;
(f) Supportive environmental materials such as handrails, ramps,
telephones, air conditioners, and similar appliances and devices.
Sec. 13 RCW 70.127.010 and 2003 c 140 s 7 are each amended to
read as follows:
Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in
this section apply throughout this chapter.
(1) "Administrator" means an individual responsible for managing
the operation of an agency.
(2) "Department" means the department of health.
(3) "Director of clinical services" means an individual responsible
for nursing, therapy, nutritional, social, and related services that
support the plan of care provided by in-home health and hospice
agencies.
(4) "Family" means individuals who are important to, and designated
by, the patient or client and who need not be relatives.
(5) "Home care agency" means a person administering or providing
home care services directly or through a contract arrangement to
individuals in places of temporary or permanent residence. A home care
agency that provides delegated tasks of nursing under RCW
18.79.260(3)(e) is not considered a home health agency for the purposes
of this chapter.
(6) "Home care services" means nonmedical services and assistance
provided to ill, disabled, or vulnerable individuals that enable them
to remain in their residences. Home care services include, but are not
limited to: Personal care such as assistance with dressing, feeding,
and personal hygiene to facilitate self-care; homemaker assistance with
household tasks, such as housekeeping, shopping, meal planning and
preparation, and transportation; respite care assistance and support
provided to the family; or other nonmedical services or delegated tasks
of nursing under RCW 18.79.260(3)(e).
(7) "Home health agency" means a person administering or providing
two or more home health services directly or through a contract
arrangement to individuals in places of temporary or permanent
residence. A person administering or providing nursing services only
may elect to be designated a home health agency for purposes of
licensure.
(8) "Home health services" means services provided to ill,
disabled, or vulnerable individuals. These services include but are
not limited to nursing services, home health aide services, physical
therapy services, occupational therapy services, speech therapy
services, respiratory therapy services, nutritional services, medical
social services, and home medical supplies or equipment services.
(9) "Home health aide services" means services provided by a home
health agency or a hospice agency under the supervision of a registered
nurse, physical therapist, occupational therapist, or speech therapist
who is employed by or under contract to a home health or hospice
agency. Such care includes ambulation and exercise, assistance with
self-administered medications, reporting changes in patients'
conditions and needs, completing appropriate records, and personal care
or homemaker services.
(10) "Home medical supplies" or "equipment services" means
diagnostic, treatment, and monitoring equipment and supplies provided
for the direct care of individuals within a plan of care.
(11) "Hospice agency" means a person administering or providing
hospice services directly or through a contract arrangement to
individuals in places of temporary or permanent residence under the
direction of an interdisciplinary team composed of at least a nurse,
social worker, physician, spiritual counselor, and a volunteer.
(12) "Hospice care center" means a homelike, noninstitutional
facility where hospice services are provided, and that meets the
requirements for operation under RCW 70.127.280.
(13) "Hospice services" means symptom and pain management provided
to a terminally ill individual, and emotional, spiritual, and
bereavement support for the individual and family in a place of
temporary or permanent residence, and may include the provision of home
health and home care services for the terminally ill individual.
(14) "In-home services agency" means a person licensed to
administer or provide home health, home care, hospice services, or
hospice care center services directly or through a contract arrangement
to individuals in a place of temporary or permanent residence.
(15) "Person" means any individual, business, firm, partnership,
corporation, company, association, joint stock association, public or
private agency or organization, or the legal successor thereof that
employs or contracts with two or more individuals.
(16) "Plan of care" means a written document based on assessment of
individual needs that identifies services to meet these needs.
(17) "Quality improvement" means reviewing and evaluating
appropriateness and effectiveness of services provided under this
chapter.
(18) "Service area" means the geographic area in which the
department has given prior approval to a licensee to provide home
health, hospice, or home care services.
(19) "Social worker" means a person with a degree from a social
work educational program accredited and approved as provided in section
2 of this act or who meets qualifications provided in 42 C.F.R. Sec.
418.114 as it existed on the effective date of this section.
(20) "Survey" means an inspection conducted by the department to
evaluate and monitor an agency's compliance with this chapter.
Sec. 14 RCW 71.05.020 and 2009 c 320 s 1 and 2009 c 217 s 20 are
each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter
unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(1) "Admission" or "admit" means a decision by a physician or
psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner that a person should
be examined or treated as a patient in a hospital;
(2) "Antipsychotic medications" means that class of drugs primarily
used to treat serious manifestations of mental illness associated with
thought disorders, which includes, but is not limited to atypical
antipsychotic medications;
(3) "Attending staff" means any person on the staff of a public or
private agency having responsibility for the care and treatment of a
patient;
(4) "Commitment" means the determination by a court that a person
should be detained for a period of either evaluation or treatment, or
both, in an inpatient or a less restrictive setting;
(5) "Conditional release" means a revocable modification of a
commitment, which may be revoked upon violation of any of its terms;
(6) "Crisis stabilization unit" means a short-term facility or a
portion of a facility licensed by the department of health and
certified by the department of social and health services under RCW
71.24.035, such as an evaluation and treatment facility or a hospital,
which has been designed to assess, diagnose, and treat individuals
experiencing an acute crisis without the use of long-term
hospitalization;
(7) "Custody" means involuntary detention under the provisions of
this chapter or chapter 10.77 RCW, uninterrupted by any period of
unconditional release from commitment from a facility providing
involuntary care and treatment;
(8) "Department" means the department of social and health
services;
(9) "Designated chemical dependency specialist" means a person
designated by the county alcoholism and other drug addiction program
coordinator designated under RCW 70.96A.310 to perform the commitment
duties described in chapters 70.96A and 70.96B RCW;
(10) "Designated crisis responder" means a mental health
professional appointed by the county or the regional support network to
perform the duties specified in this chapter;
(11) "Designated mental health professional" means a mental health
professional designated by the county or other authority authorized in
rule to perform the duties specified in this chapter;
(12) "Detention" or "detain" means the lawful confinement of a
person, under the provisions of this chapter;
(13) "Developmental disabilities professional" means a person who
has specialized training and three years of experience in directly
treating or working with persons with developmental disabilities and is
a psychiatrist, psychologist, psychiatric advanced registered nurse
practitioner, or social worker, and such other developmental
disabilities professionals as may be defined by rules adopted by the
secretary;
(14) "Developmental disability" means that condition defined in RCW
71A.10.020(3);
(15) "Discharge" means the termination of hospital medical
authority. The commitment may remain in place, be terminated, or be
amended by court order;
(16) "Evaluation and treatment facility" means any facility which
can provide directly, or by direct arrangement with other public or
private agencies, emergency evaluation and treatment, outpatient care,
and timely and appropriate inpatient care to persons suffering from a
mental disorder, and which is certified as such by the department. A
physically separate and separately operated portion of a state hospital
may be designated as an evaluation and treatment facility. A facility
which is part of, or operated by, the department or any federal agency
will not require certification. No correctional institution or
facility, or jail, shall be an evaluation and treatment facility within
the meaning of this chapter;
(17) "Gravely disabled" means a condition in which a person, as a
result of a mental disorder: (a) Is in danger of serious physical harm
resulting from a failure to provide for his or her essential human
needs of health or safety; or (b) manifests severe deterioration in
routine functioning evidenced by repeated and escalating loss of
cognitive or volitional control over his or her actions and is not
receiving such care as is essential for his or her health or safety;
(18) "Habilitative services" means those services provided by
program personnel to assist persons in acquiring and maintaining life
skills and in raising their levels of physical, mental, social, and
vocational functioning. Habilitative services include education,
training for employment, and therapy. The habilitative process shall
be undertaken with recognition of the risk to the public safety
presented by the person being assisted as manifested by prior charged
criminal conduct;
(19) "History of one or more violent acts" refers to the period of
time ten years prior to the filing of a petition under this chapter,
excluding any time spent, but not any violent acts committed, in a
mental health facility or in confinement as a result of a criminal
conviction;
(20) "Imminent" means the state or condition of being likely to
occur at any moment or near at hand, rather than distant or remote;
(21) "Individualized service plan" means a plan prepared by a
developmental disabilities professional with other professionals as a
team, for a person with developmental disabilities, which shall state:
(a) The nature of the person's specific problems, prior charged
criminal behavior, and habilitation needs;
(b) The conditions and strategies necessary to achieve the purposes
of habilitation;
(c) The intermediate and long-range goals of the habilitation
program, with a projected timetable for the attainment;
(d) The rationale for using this plan of habilitation to achieve
those intermediate and long-range goals;
(e) The staff responsible for carrying out the plan;
(f) Where relevant in light of past criminal behavior and due
consideration for public safety, the criteria for proposed movement to
less-restrictive settings, criteria for proposed eventual discharge or
release, and a projected possible date for discharge or release; and
(g) The type of residence immediately anticipated for the person
and possible future types of residences;
(22) "Information related to mental health services" means all
information and records compiled, obtained, or maintained in the course
of providing services to either voluntary or involuntary recipients of
services by a mental health service provider. This may include
documents of legal proceedings under this chapter or chapter 71.34 or
10.77 RCW, or somatic health care information;
(23) "Judicial commitment" means a commitment by a court pursuant
to the provisions of this chapter;
(24) "Legal counsel" means attorneys and staff employed by county
prosecutor offices or the state attorney general acting in their
capacity as legal representatives of public mental health service
providers under RCW 71.05.130;
(25) "Likelihood of serious harm" means:
(a) A substantial risk that: (i) Physical harm will be inflicted
by a person upon his or her own person, as evidenced by threats or
attempts to commit suicide or inflict physical harm on oneself; (ii)
physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon another, as evidenced
by behavior which has caused such harm or which places another person
or persons in reasonable fear of sustaining such harm; or (iii)
physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon the property of
others, as evidenced by behavior which has caused substantial loss or
damage to the property of others; or
(b) The person has threatened the physical safety of another and
has a history of one or more violent acts;
(26) "Mental disorder" means any organic, mental, or emotional
impairment which has substantial adverse effects on a person's
cognitive or volitional functions;
(27) "Mental health professional" means a psychiatrist,
psychologist, psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner,
psychiatric nurse, or social worker, and such other mental health
professionals as may be defined by rules adopted by the secretary
pursuant to the provisions of this chapter;
(28) "Mental health service provider" means a public or private
agency that provides mental health services to persons with mental
disorders as defined under this section and receives funding from
public sources. This includes, but is not limited to, hospitals
licensed under chapter 70.41 RCW, evaluation and treatment facilities
as defined in this section, community mental health service delivery
systems or community mental health programs as defined in RCW
71.24.025, facilities conducting competency evaluations and restoration
under chapter 10.77 RCW, and correctional facilities operated by state
and local governments;
(29) "Peace officer" means a law enforcement official of a public
agency or governmental unit, and includes persons specifically given
peace officer powers by any state law, local ordinance, or judicial
order of appointment;
(30) "Private agency" means any person, partnership, corporation,
or association that is not a public agency, whether or not financed in
whole or in part by public funds, which constitutes an evaluation and
treatment facility or private institution, or hospital, which is
conducted for, or includes a department or ward conducted for, the care
and treatment of persons who are mentally ill;
(31) "Professional person" means a mental health professional and
shall also mean a physician, psychiatric advanced registered nurse
practitioner, registered nurse, and such others as may be defined by
rules adopted by the secretary pursuant to the provisions of this
chapter;
(32) "Psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner" means a
person who is licensed as an advanced registered nurse practitioner
pursuant to chapter 18.79 RCW; and who is board certified in advanced
practice psychiatric and mental health nursing;
(33) "Psychiatrist" means a person having a license as a physician
and surgeon in this state who has in addition completed three years of
graduate training in psychiatry in a program approved by the American
medical association or the American osteopathic association and is
certified or eligible to be certified by the American board of
psychiatry and neurology;
(34) "Psychologist" means a person who has been licensed as a
psychologist pursuant to chapter 18.83 RCW;
(35) "Public agency" means any evaluation and treatment facility or
institution, or hospital which is conducted for, or includes a
department or ward conducted for, the care and treatment of persons
with mental illness, if the agency is operated directly by, federal,
state, county, or municipal government, or a combination of such
governments;
(36) "Registration records" include all the records of the
department, regional support networks, treatment facilities, and other
persons providing services to the department, county departments, or
facilities which identify persons who are receiving or who at any time
have received services for mental illness;
(37) "Release" means legal termination of the commitment under the
provisions of this chapter;
(38) "Resource management services" has the meaning given in
chapter 71.24 RCW;
(39) "Secretary" means the secretary of the department of social
and health services, or his or her designee;
(40) "Serious violent offense" has the same meaning as provided in
RCW 9.94A.030;
(41) "Social worker" means a person with a master's or further
advanced degree from ((an accredited school of social work or a degree
deemed equivalent under rules adopted by the secretary)) a social work
educational program accredited and approved as provided in section 2 of
this act;
(42) "Therapeutic court personnel" means the staff of a mental
health court or other therapeutic court which has jurisdiction over
defendants who are dually diagnosed with mental disorders, including
court personnel, probation officers, a court monitor, prosecuting
attorney, or defense counsel acting within the scope of therapeutic
court duties;
(43) "Treatment records" include registration and all other records
concerning persons who are receiving or who at any time have received
services for mental illness, which are maintained by the department, by
regional support networks and their staffs, and by treatment
facilities. Treatment records include mental health information
contained in a medical bill including but not limited to mental health
drugs, a mental health diagnosis, provider name, and dates of service
stemming from a medical service. Treatment records do not include
notes or records maintained for personal use by a person providing
treatment services for the department, regional support networks, or a
treatment facility if the notes or records are not available to others;
(44) "Violent act" means behavior that resulted in homicide,
attempted suicide, nonfatal injuries, or substantial damage to
property.
Sec. 15 RCW 71.32.020 and 2003 c 283 s 2 are each amended to read
as follows:
The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter
unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(1) "Adult" means any individual who has attained the age of
majority or is an emancipated minor.
(2) "Agent" has the same meaning as an attorney-in-fact or agent as
provided in chapter 11.94 RCW.
(3) "Capacity" means that an adult has not been found to be
incapacitated pursuant to this chapter or RCW 11.88.010(1)(e).
(4) "Court" means a superior court under chapter 2.08 RCW.
(5) "Health care facility" means a hospital, as defined in RCW
70.41.020; an institution, as defined in RCW 71.12.455; a state
hospital, as defined in RCW 72.23.010; a nursing home, as defined in
RCW 18.51.010; or a clinic that is part of a community mental health
service delivery system, as defined in RCW 71.24.025.
(6) "Health care provider" means an osteopathic physician or
osteopathic physician's assistant licensed under chapter 18.57 or
18.57A RCW, a physician or physician's assistant licensed under chapter
18.71 or 18.71A RCW, or an advanced registered nurse practitioner
licensed under RCW 18.79.050.
(7) "Incapacitated" means an adult who: (a) Is unable to
understand the nature, character, and anticipated results of proposed
treatment or alternatives; understand the recognized serious possible
risks, complications, and anticipated benefits in treatments and
alternatives, including nontreatment; or communicate his or her
understanding or treatment decisions; or (b) has been found to be
incompetent pursuant to RCW 11.88.010(1)(e).
(8) "Informed consent" means consent that is given after the
person: (a) Is provided with a description of the nature, character,
and anticipated results of proposed treatments and alternatives, and
the recognized serious possible risks, complications, and anticipated
benefits in the treatments and alternatives, including nontreatment, in
language that the person can reasonably be expected to understand; or
(b) elects not to be given the information included in (a) of this
subsection.
(9) "Long-term care facility" has the same meaning as defined in
RCW 43.190.020.
(10) "Mental disorder" means any organic, mental, or emotional
impairment which has substantial adverse effects on an individual's
cognitive or volitional functions.
(11) "Mental health advance directive" or "directive" means a
written document in which the principal makes a declaration of
instructions or preferences or appoints an agent to make decisions on
behalf of the principal regarding the principal's mental health
treatment, or both, and that is consistent with the provisions of this
chapter.
(12) "Mental health professional" means a psychiatrist,
psychologist, psychiatric nurse, or social worker, and such other
mental health professionals as may be defined by rules adopted by the
secretary pursuant to the provisions of chapter 71.05 RCW.
(13) "Principal" means an adult who has executed a mental health
advance directive.
(14) "Professional person" means a mental health professional and
shall also mean a physician, registered nurse, and such others as may
be defined by rules adopted by the secretary pursuant to the provisions
of chapter 71.05 RCW.
(15) "Social worker" means a person with a master's or further
advanced degree from a social work educational program accredited and
approved as provided in section 2 of this act.
Sec. 16 RCW 71.34.020 and 2010 c 94 s 20 are each amended to read
as follows:
Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in
this section apply throughout this chapter.
(1) "Child psychiatrist" means a person having a license as a
physician and surgeon in this state, who has had graduate training in
child psychiatry in a program approved by the American Medical
Association or the American Osteopathic Association, and who is board
eligible or board certified in child psychiatry.
(2) "Children's mental health specialist" means:
(a) A mental health professional who has completed a minimum of one
hundred actual hours, not quarter or semester hours, of specialized
training devoted to the study of child development and the treatment of
children; and
(b) A mental health professional who has the equivalent of one year
of full-time experience in the treatment of children under the
supervision of a children's mental health specialist.
(3) "Commitment" means a determination by a judge or court
commissioner, made after a commitment hearing, that the minor is in
need of inpatient diagnosis, evaluation, or treatment or that the minor
is in need of less restrictive alternative treatment.
(4) "Department" means the department of social and health
services.
(5) "Designated mental health professional" means a mental health
professional designated by one or more counties to perform the
functions of a designated mental health professional described in this
chapter.
(6) "Evaluation and treatment facility" means a public or private
facility or unit that is certified by the department to provide
emergency, inpatient, residential, or outpatient mental health
evaluation and treatment services for minors. A physically separate
and separately-operated portion of a state hospital may be designated
as an evaluation and treatment facility for minors. A facility which
is part of or operated by the department or federal agency does not
require certification. No correctional institution or facility,
juvenile court detention facility, or jail may be an evaluation and
treatment facility within the meaning of this chapter.
(7) "Evaluation and treatment program" means the total system of
services and facilities coordinated and approved by a county or
combination of counties for the evaluation and treatment of minors
under this chapter.
(8) "Gravely disabled minor" means a minor who, as a result of a
mental disorder, is in danger of serious physical harm resulting from
a failure to provide for his or her essential human needs of health or
safety, or manifests severe deterioration in routine functioning
evidenced by repeated and escalating loss of cognitive or volitional
control over his or her actions and is not receiving such care as is
essential for his or her health or safety.
(9) "Inpatient treatment" means twenty-four-hour-per-day mental
health care provided within a general hospital, psychiatric hospital,
or residential treatment facility certified by the department as an
evaluation and treatment facility for minors.
(10) "Less restrictive alternative" or "less restrictive setting"
means outpatient treatment provided to a minor who is not residing in
a facility providing inpatient treatment as defined in this chapter.
(11) "Likelihood of serious harm" means either: (a) A substantial
risk that physical harm will be inflicted by an individual upon his or
her own person, as evidenced by threats or attempts to commit suicide
or inflict physical harm on oneself; (b) a substantial risk that
physical harm will be inflicted by an individual upon another, as
evidenced by behavior which has caused such harm or which places
another person or persons in reasonable fear of sustaining such harm;
or (c) a substantial risk that physical harm will be inflicted by an
individual upon the property of others, as evidenced by behavior which
has caused substantial loss or damage to the property of others.
(12) "Medical necessity" for inpatient care means a requested
service which is reasonably calculated to: (a) Diagnose, correct,
cure, or alleviate a mental disorder; or (b) prevent the worsening of
mental conditions that endanger life or cause suffering and pain, or
result in illness or infirmity or threaten to cause or aggravate a
handicap, or cause physical deformity or malfunction, and there is no
adequate less restrictive alternative available.
(13) "Mental disorder" means any organic, mental, or emotional
impairment that has substantial adverse effects on an individual's
cognitive or volitional functions. The presence of alcohol abuse, drug
abuse, juvenile criminal history, antisocial behavior, or intellectual
disabilities alone is insufficient to justify a finding of "mental
disorder" within the meaning of this section.
(14) "Mental health professional" means a psychiatrist,
psychologist, psychiatric nurse, or social worker, and such other
mental health professionals as may be defined by rules adopted by the
secretary under this chapter.
(15) "Minor" means any person under the age of eighteen years.
(16) "Outpatient treatment" means any of the nonresidential
services mandated under chapter 71.24 RCW and provided by licensed
services providers as identified by RCW 71.24.025.
(17) "Parent" means:
(a) A biological or adoptive parent who has legal custody of the
child, including either parent if custody is shared under a joint
custody agreement; or
(b) A person or agency judicially appointed as legal guardian or
custodian of the child.
(18) "Professional person in charge" or "professional person" means
a physician or other mental health professional empowered by an
evaluation and treatment facility with authority to make admission and
discharge decisions on behalf of that facility.
(19) "Psychiatric nurse" means a registered nurse who has a
bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university, and who has
had, in addition, at least two years' experience in the direct
treatment of persons who have a mental illness or who are emotionally
disturbed, such experience gained under the supervision of a mental
health professional. "Psychiatric nurse" shall also mean any other
registered nurse who has three years of such experience.
(20) "Psychiatrist" means a person having a license as a physician
in this state who has completed residency training in psychiatry in a
program approved by the American Medical Association or the American
Osteopathic Association, and is board eligible or board certified in
psychiatry.
(21) "Psychologist" means a person licensed as a psychologist under
chapter 18.83 RCW.
(22) "Responsible other" means the minor, the minor's parent or
estate, or any other person legally responsible for support of the
minor.
(23) "Secretary" means the secretary of the department or
secretary's designee.
(24) "Social worker" means a person with a master's or further
advanced degree from a social work educational program accredited and
approved as provided in section 2 of this act.
(25) "Start of initial detention" means the time of arrival of the
minor at the first evaluation and treatment facility offering inpatient
treatment if the minor is being involuntarily detained at the time.
With regard to voluntary patients, "start of initial detention" means
the time at which the minor gives notice of intent to leave under the
provisions of this chapter.
Sec. 17 RCW 74.13.029 and 2009 c 491 s 8 are each amended to read
as follows:
Once a dependency is established under chapter 13.34 RCW, the
((social worker)) department employee assigned to the case shall
provide the dependent child age twelve years and older with a document
containing the information described in RCW 74.13.031(16). The
((social worker)) department employee shall explain the contents of the
document to the child and direct the child to the department's web site
for further information. The ((social worker)) department employee
shall document, in the electronic data system, that this requirement
was met.
Sec. 18 RCW 74.34.020 and 2010 c 133 s 2 are each amended to read
as follows:
Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in
this section apply throughout this chapter.
(1) "Abandonment" means action or inaction by a person or entity
with a duty of care for a vulnerable adult that leaves the vulnerable
person without the means or ability to obtain necessary food, clothing,
shelter, or health care.
(2) "Abuse" means the willful action or inaction that inflicts
injury, unreasonable confinement, intimidation, or punishment on a
vulnerable adult. In instances of abuse of a vulnerable adult who is
unable to express or demonstrate physical harm, pain, or mental
anguish, the abuse is presumed to cause physical harm, pain, or mental
anguish. Abuse includes sexual abuse, mental abuse, physical abuse,
and exploitation of a vulnerable adult, which have the following
meanings:
(a) "Sexual abuse" means any form of nonconsensual sexual contact,
including but not limited to unwanted or inappropriate touching, rape,
sodomy, sexual coercion, sexually explicit photographing, and sexual
harassment. Sexual abuse includes any sexual contact between a staff
person, who is not also a resident or client, of a facility or a staff
person of a program authorized under chapter 71A.12 RCW, and a
vulnerable adult living in that facility or receiving service from a
program authorized under chapter 71A.12 RCW, whether or not it is
consensual.
(b) "Physical abuse" means the willful action of inflicting bodily
injury or physical mistreatment. Physical abuse includes, but is not
limited to, striking with or without an object, slapping, pinching,
choking, kicking, shoving, prodding, or the use of chemical restraints
or physical restraints unless the restraints are consistent with
licensing requirements, and includes restraints that are otherwise
being used inappropriately.
(c) "Mental abuse" means any willful action or inaction of mental
or verbal abuse. Mental abuse includes, but is not limited to,
coercion, harassment, inappropriately isolating a vulnerable adult from
family, friends, or regular activity, and verbal assault that includes
ridiculing, intimidating, yelling, or swearing.
(d) "Exploitation" means an act of forcing, compelling, or exerting
undue influence over a vulnerable adult causing the vulnerable adult to
act in a way that is inconsistent with relevant past behavior, or
causing the vulnerable adult to perform services for the benefit of
another.
(3) "Consent" means express written consent granted after the
vulnerable adult or his or her legal representative has been fully
informed of the nature of the services to be offered and that the
receipt of services is voluntary.
(4) "Department" means the department of social and health
services.
(5) "Facility" means a residence licensed or required to be
licensed under chapter 18.20 RCW, boarding homes; chapter 18.51 RCW,
nursing homes; chapter 70.128 RCW, adult family homes; chapter 72.36
RCW, soldiers' homes; or chapter 71A.20 RCW, residential habilitation
centers; or any other facility licensed by the department.
(6) "Financial exploitation" means the illegal or improper use of
the property, income, resources, or trust funds of the vulnerable adult
by any person for any person's profit or advantage other than for the
vulnerable adult's profit or advantage.
(7) "Financial institution" has the same meaning as in RCW
30.22.040 and 30.22.041. For purposes of this chapter only, "financial
institution" also means a "broker-dealer" or "investment adviser" as
defined in RCW 21.20.005.
(8) "Incapacitated person" means a person who is at a significant
risk of personal or financial harm under RCW 11.88.010(1) (a), (b),
(c), or (d).
(9) "Individual provider" means a person under contract with the
department to provide services in the home under chapter 74.09 or
74.39A RCW.
(10) "Interested person" means a person who demonstrates to the
court's satisfaction that the person is interested in the welfare of
the vulnerable adult, that the person has a good faith belief that the
court's intervention is necessary, and that the vulnerable adult is
unable, due to incapacity, undue influence, or duress at the time the
petition is filed, to protect his or her own interests.
(11) "Mandated reporter" is an employee of the department; law
enforcement officer; social worker; professional school personnel;
individual provider; an employee of a facility; an operator of a
facility; an employee of a social service, welfare, mental health,
adult day health, adult day care, home health, home care, or hospice
agency; county coroner or medical examiner; Christian Science
practitioner; or health care provider subject to chapter 18.130 RCW.
(12) "Neglect" means (a) a pattern of conduct or inaction by a
person or entity with a duty of care that fails to provide the goods
and services that maintain physical or mental health of a vulnerable
adult, or that fails to avoid or prevent physical or mental harm or
pain to a vulnerable adult; or (b) an act or omission that demonstrates
a serious disregard of consequences of such a magnitude as to
constitute a clear and present danger to the vulnerable adult's health,
welfare, or safety, including but not limited to conduct prohibited
under RCW 9A.42.100.
(13) "Permissive reporter" means any person, including, but not
limited to, an employee of a financial institution, attorney, or
volunteer in a facility or program providing services for vulnerable
adults.
(14) "Protective services" means any services provided by the
department to a vulnerable adult with the consent of the vulnerable
adult, or the legal representative of the vulnerable adult, who has
been abandoned, abused, financially exploited, neglected, or in a state
of self-neglect. These services may include, but are not limited to
case management, social casework, home care, placement, arranging for
medical evaluations, psychological evaluations, day care, or referral
for legal assistance.
(15) "Self-neglect" means the failure of a vulnerable adult, not
living in a facility, to provide for himself or herself the goods and
services necessary for the vulnerable adult's physical or mental
health, and the absence of which impairs or threatens the vulnerable
adult's well-being. This definition may include a vulnerable adult who
is receiving services through home health, hospice, or a home care
agency, or an individual provider when the neglect is not a result of
inaction by that agency or individual provider.
(16) "Social worker" means:
(a) A social worker as defined in section 2(2) of this act; or
(b) Anyone engaged in a professional capacity during the regular
course of employment in encouraging or promoting the health, welfare,
support, or education of vulnerable adults, or providing social
services to vulnerable adults, whether in an individual capacity or as
an employee or agent of any public or private organization or
institution.
(17) "Vulnerable adult" includes a person:
(a) Sixty years of age or older who has the functional, mental, or
physical inability to care for himself or herself; or
(b) Found incapacitated under chapter 11.88 RCW; or
(c) Who has a developmental disability as defined under RCW
71A.10.020; or
(d) Admitted to any facility; or
(e) Receiving services from home health, hospice, or home care
agencies licensed or required to be licensed under chapter 70.127 RCW;
or
(f) Receiving services from an individual provider.
Sec. 19 RCW 74.42.010 and 2010 c 94 s 27 are each reenacted and
amended to read as follows:
Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in
this section apply throughout this chapter.
(1) "Department" means the department of social and health services
and the department's employees.
(2) "Facility" refers to a nursing home as defined in RCW
18.51.010.
(3) "Licensed practical nurse" means a person licensed to practice
practical nursing under chapter 18.79 RCW.
(4) "Medicaid" means Title XIX of the Social Security Act enacted
by the social security amendments of 1965 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1396; 79
Stat. 343), as amended.
(5) "Nurse practitioner" means a person licensed to practice
advanced registered nursing under chapter 18.79 RCW.
(6) "Nursing care" means that care provided by a registered nurse,
an advanced registered nurse practitioner, a licensed practical nurse,
or a nursing assistant in the regular performance of their duties.
(7) "Physician assistant" means a person practicing pursuant to
chapters 18.57A and 18.71A RCW.
(8) "Qualified therapist" means:
(a) An activities specialist who has specialized education,
training, or experience specified by the department.
(b) An audiologist who is eligible for a certificate of clinical
competence in audiology or who has the equivalent education and
clinical experience.
(c) A mental health professional as defined in chapter 71.05 RCW.
(d) An intellectual disabilities professional who is a qualified
therapist or a therapist approved by the department and has specialized
training or one year experience in treating or working with persons
with intellectual or developmental disabilities.
(e) An occupational therapist who is a graduate of a program in
occupational therapy or who has equivalent education or training.
(f) A physical therapist as defined in chapter 18.74 RCW.
(g) A social worker ((who is a graduate of a school of social
work)) as defined in section 2(2) of this act.
(h) A speech pathologist who is eligible for a certificate of
clinical competence in speech pathology or who has equivalent education
and clinical experience.
(9) "Registered nurse" means a person licensed to practice
registered nursing under chapter 18.79 RCW.
(10) "Resident" means an individual residing in a nursing home, as
defined in RCW 18.51.010.
NEW SECTION. Sec. 20 Sections 1 through 3 of this act constitute
a new chapter in Title
NEW SECTION. Sec. 21 This act takes effect January 1, 2012.