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Committee adopts substitute and hears testimony on HB 52 to strengthen minors’ rights and unannounced inspections at psychiatric hospitals
Summary
House Bill 52 would strengthen family communications and oversight for minors in psychiatric hospitals, require unannounced inspections at least twice a year and expand reporting on seclusion and chemical restraints; the committee adopted a committee substitute and took invited testimony on the measure.
Representative Maxine Divert introduced House Bill 52 as a measure to protect youth in psychiatric hospitals by strengthening parental and guardian communications rights, requiring regular unannounced inspections, and improving transparency about seclusion and chemical restraint use.
Committee staff explained changes in the draft committee substitute, including updated language to use "professional person in charge" instead of "overseeing physician," insertion of "reasonable" limits on communications to avoid 24/7 unsupervised phone access, and expansion of report elements to include types of intramuscular medications used on minors. The substitute pushed the bill’s effective date from 2025 to 2026 at the Department of Health’s recommendation.
Representative Divert said the reforms respond to a 2022 U.S. Department of Justice finding that Alaska violated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act by institutionalizing children with disabilities at elevated rates and using seclusion and restraints improperly. The bill requires at least two unannounced inspections annually and would require the Department of Health to compile an annual report for the legislature with specified data points. Committee staff said the unannounced inspection requirement is intended to fulfill part of the DOJ’s remedial plan.
Officials from the Department of Health and the Division of Health Care Services outlined enforcement options. Matthew Thomas, nurse consultant with the Division of Health Care Services, said enforcement actions under AS 47.32.140 range from warning letters up to termination of facility licensure and that any individual or entity may submit complaints to the department for triage and investigation. The committee also heard testimony from tribal and nonprofit groups and young people with lived experience: Ben Malat of the Alaska Federation of Natives supported the bill for rural Alaska; Miguel (Miguel Jaime) testified about time spent in a psychiatric facility when he lacked foster placement and described restrictive conditions and use of restraints.
The committee adopted the committee substitute for HB 52 and received substantial invited and public testimony. Members asked for additional information about how the bill’s communications provisions intersect with existing psychiatric-patient rights statutes, and about whether the 50% interview quota required in inspections was feasible in large facilities. Committee staff and the sponsor agreed to provide follow-up information. The committee said it will return to HB 52 at a future hearing.
