The Department of Mental Health (DMH) released proposed revisions to its regulations governing DMH’s oversight of mental health facilities. The majority of the proposed changes are to implement relevant sections of last year’s opioid law (Chapter 208 of the Acts of 2018).
Among other things, the proposed amendments require all licensed DMH facilities to provide services to commonwealth residents with public health insurance on a non-discriminatory basis, and require the reporting of a facility’s payer mix to DMH on a quarterly basis. The proposed regulations also require designation of a comfort or sensory space in the facility, allow an on-duty clinician acting on behalf of the treating physician to restrict or authorize a patient’s access to the outdoors depending on a change in circumstances that affects the patient’s ability to safely access the outdoors, and allow the use of telemedicine in specific circumstances.
DMH will hold a public hearing on these regulations on Wednesday May 1, from 2 to 4 p.m. in the Boston Room at DMH’s Central Office at 25 Staniford Street, Boston.