CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The New Hampshire chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of psychiatric patients being involuntarily held in hospital emergency departments.
State law requires involuntary psychiatric patients to get probable cause hearings within three days of admission. Under the state’s interpretation, the clock starts when someone is admitted to an inpatient facility, but the lawsuit points to a Merrimack County court ruling that said the clock starts with emergency room admission.
The lead plaintiff is a 26-year-old man who was held involuntarily at Southern New Hampshire Medical Center for nearly a week without a hearing.
The suit highlights a longstanding problem of lengthy waits in emergency rooms for inpatient psychiatric inpatient treatment. Neither state officials nor a hospital spokeswoman immediately responded to requests for comment Tuesday.
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