Enacts "Jesse's law" to provide that a person subject to involuntary emergency admission for immediate observation, care, and treatment of mental illness shall have the right to select the hospital they are admitted to.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9549
IN ASSEMBLY
January 14, 2026
___________
Introduced by M. of A. SIMON -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Mental Health
AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to involuntary emer-
gency admission of persons alleged to be mentally ill
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
2 "Jesse's law".
3 § 2. The mental hygiene law is amended by adding a new section 9.42
4 to read as follows:
5 § 9.42 Patient's right to choose a qualified hospital for involuntary
6 emergency admission.
7 In the event that a police officer or peace officer is involuntarily
8 removing a person to a hospital under the provisions of section 9.41 of
9 this article, that person may choose the hospital to which they are
10 admitted as long as the hospital meets the criteria specified in subdi-
11 vision (a) of section 9.39 of this article, has adequate space and
12 staffing, and is no more than fifty miles from the location at which the
13 person is taken into custody.
14 § 3. Within 60 days of the effective date of this act, the department
15 of mental hygiene shall distribute to each county sheriff a list of all
16 hospitals that meet the criteria specified in subdivision (a) of section
17 9.39 of the mental hygiene law. The department shall distribute an
18 updated list any time a hospital gains or loses 9.39 certification.
19 § 4. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
20 have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01936-01-5
