Legislature(2025 - 2026)ADAMS 519
05/15/2025 01:30 PM House FINANCE
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB64 | |
| SB39 | |
| HB52 | |
| SB64 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | SB 39 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | HB 52 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | SB 64 | TELECONFERENCED | |
HOUSE BILL NO. 52
"An Act relating to the rights of minors undergoing
evaluation or inpatient treatment at psychiatric
hospitals; relating to the use of seclusion or
restraint of minors at psychiatric hospitals; relating
to a report published by the Department of Health;
relating to inspections by the Department of Health of
certain psychiatric hospitals; and providing for an
effective date."
4:16:46 PM
REPRESENTATIVE MAXINE DIBERT, SPONSOR, thanked her staff
for their work on the bill. She relayed that the bill
focused on improving child psychiatric care in Alaska. She
expressed gratitude to the committee for hearing the
legislation. The bill was designed to better protect
children receiving care in psychiatric care hospitals in
Alaska by reinforcing parental rights and increasing
transparency during treatment. The bill accomplished the
goals through three straightforward reforms.
Representative Dibert reviewed the three steps the state
could take to protect its most vulnerable citizens. First,
the bill expanded the rights of parents and guardians to
communicate with their children while they were receiving
psychiatric care. The bill ensured regular access to
telephone and video communication. She relayed that many of
the children were placed in facilities hundreds of miles
from their homes and maintaining connection was critical to
their wellbeing. She stated that in a previous hearing the
committee heard directly from former patients who were now
adults who shared that as children, they went months
without any contact with their guardians despite repeated
requests. She underscored that a lot of work was needed and
the situation was unacceptable.
Representative Dibert addressed the second action taken by
the bill. The legislation required unannounced thorough
inspections of the facilities to be done by state public
health officials. Currently, inspections took place only
once every 36 months. The gap had allowed some facilities
to fall short of the standard of care children deserved.
Reports of neglect, abuse, and sexual assault made it clear
the state was not doing enough and it was their duty to
ensure children were protected. Third, the bill brought
much needed transparency to the use of all forms of
restraint in psychiatric hospitals including chemical
restraints. The bill defined the practices clearly in
statute and required detailed documentation of their use,
along with the use of physical restraint and seclusion. She
shared that a lot of work had been done in the House Health
and Social Services Committee to help with the specific
section. She explained that with the rising rates of
restraint used in psychiatric hospitals, there were serious
concerns that measures were being misused to punish
patients rather than to treat them, ultimately harming a
child's ability to heal and reintegrate into their
communities. She stressed that a youth should never come
out of treatment worse than when they entered. She stated
that the bill was not a silver bullet, but it was an
important first step bringing Alaska closer to compliance
and paving the way for better outcomes for children in
psychiatric care. She requested to hear the sectional
analysis from her staff.
Co-Chair Foster noted that people had been waiting for some
time for public testimony so he would move to that first.
Representative Dibert noted there should be a second
[invited] testifier online. She noted that Ben Mallot with
the Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN) should be available.
Co-Chair Foster confirmed that Mr. Mallot was online. He
moved to invited testimony.
4:22:19 PM
MATEO JAIME, COMMUNITY RELATIONS LIAISON, FACING FOSTER
CARE, ANCHORAGE (via teleconference), shared that he
entered foster care when he was 15 in 2017 and made his way
from Texas to Alaska because of the Indian Child Welfare
Act (ICWA). He shared that he had switched placement due to
rampant abuse. There had been no foster homes in Anchorage;
therefore, his caseworker sent him to North Star
[Behavioral Health System]. He explained that the entry
process had been very difficult, and he was not allowed to
have his own clothes. The doctor told him he would be there
for two weeks, which turned into two months. He shared that
he witnessed a lot of medical abuse during his time at
North Star, including staff that physically attacked
patients who were much smaller. He detailed that "so
called" therapy sessions involved North Star trying to send
patients to long-term out-of-state facilities. He relayed
that the facility did not listen or help patients learn how
to navigate their issues. He shared that he did not have
any mental health issues, despite going through long-term
trauma. He explained that staff at North Star tried to put
him on medications even though he did not need them. He
provided additional testimony [indecipherable due to poor
audio]. He stressed the importance of transparency in
psychiatric institutions. He thanked the committee for the
time to speak.
Representative Hannan asked if Mr. Jaime graduated from the
University of Alaska the previous week with honors.
Mr. Jaime responded affirmatively. He shared that he
graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in legal
studies.
Representative Hannan replied that it had been a privilege
to see Mr. Jaime's growth and maturity over the past
several years. She wished him the best and thanked him for
testifying.
4:26:08 PM
BENJAMIN MALLOTT, PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER,
ALASKA FEDERATION OF NATIVES, ANCHORAGE (via
teleconference), shared information about AFN. He thanked
Representative Dibert for her leadership on the bill. He
congratulated Mr. Jaime on his graduation and wished him
the best of luck. He relayed that AFN supported the bill
for many reasons. First, rural Alaska mental healthcare was
very limited for options. Most often when youth were in
mental crisis they were sent to facilities that were far
from home. The bill would allow more access for parents
and/or families to contact children in distress or in
facilities. The bill also allowed the state to have better
care and management of the facilities including two annual
unannounced inspections. The bill provided more
transparency in the use of sometimes very traumatizing
restraints for youth in facilities. Overall, the bill was a
step in the right direction for the care of youth in
facilities. He thanked Representative Dibert for her
leadership ensuring youth had the access to care they
deserved. He thanked the committee, Gunalchéesh.
4:28:31 PM
Co-Chair Foster OPENED public testimony.
4:28:53 PM
STEVEN PEARCE, DIRECTOR, CITIZENS COMMISSION ON HUMAN
RIGHTS, SEATTLE (via teleconference), shared that the
commission is a psychiatric watchdog organization. The
commission supported the bill. The organization believed
the reforms the bill brought to reduce abuse, strengthen
family connections, and improve transparency of Alaska
psychiatric hospitals was a move in the right direction. He
referenced a recommendation by the Disability Law Center
about reviewing the current approach using powerful, mind
altering psychiatric drugs by moving to a new focus of
treatment in providing a noncoercive drug-free approach to
move youth towards recovery of health. He underscored that
psychiatric drugs were not cures and they often led to
long-term disability. He stated that the bill addressed
some of the issue of treating youth better, but involuntary
treatment for youth must evolve beyond being a chemical
restraint or deterrent for youth in emotional crisis. He
stated that testimony clearly showed that people were not
treated with respect and dignity that should have been
provided. The organization urged that the bill should go
further and suggested language specifying that patients had
the right to be treated with dignity as a human being. He
reiterated support for the bill.
4:31:00 PM
Co-Chair Foster CLOSED public testimony for HB 52.
Co-Chair Foster CLOSED public testimony for SB 39.
Co-Chair Foster asked for a review of the fiscal notes for
HB 52.
4:31:52 PM
BRODIE ANDERSON, STAFF, REPRESENTATIVE NEAL FOSTER,
reviewed the zero fiscal note from Department of Family and
Community Services (DFCS), OMB component 3314, control code
JbxmK. The department specified in the note that it could
provide the necessary data with no fiscal impact. The
second zero fiscal note was from DFCS, OMB component 3321,
Odoim. The data to be collected and tracked would come at
no additional cost to the department. The third fiscal note
was from the Department of Health, OMB component 2944,
control code Otlnx. The fiscal note included an FY 26 cost
of $172,100 in personal services, $35,000 services, and
$5,000 in commodities, for a total operating cost of
$212,100 in unrestricted general funds for a full-time
position. The department would also be required to do some
regulation review. He provided a cost breakdown including
one new nurse consultant 1 position, annual services of
$20,000 for office space, phone number, and reimbursable
services, and $15,000 for two annual trainings for the
position. Additional costs were $2,000 for office supplies
and a one-time commodity cost of $3,000 in FY 26.
4:35:11 PM
Co-Chair Josephson asked how the communication feature
would be applied if a youth was transferred out of state to
Utah for example.
Representative Dibert replied that the bill only focused on
youth in Alaska. She hoped that further legislation in the
future could help with youth who were out of state.
Co-Chair Josephson asked if Representative Andrew Gray had
a similar bill.
Representative Dibert agreed that Representative Gray had a
similar bill. She deferred the question to her staff for
detail.
4:36:36 PM
MATTIE HULL, STAFF, REPRESENTATIVE MAXINE DIBERT, responded
that the bill submitted by Representative Gray interacted
with foster care populations. He relayed that of the 213
applicable Medicaid psychiatric patients, 66 were in foster
care. He explained that it was a different population. The
bill helped many [youth] that were in foster care, but it
pertained to psychiatric children and not foster children.
Representative Bynum observed the bill was written so the
minor in care had the right to the communications aspect.
He wondered if there was something that protected the
parent's right to communicate with the minor in care. He
did not see it in the bill and wondered if it was already
established in law.
Mr. Hull answered that he was not aware of anything in
statute. The bill would establish the right for a parent to
create a request for communication. He noted that he may be
incorrect.
Representative Bynum asked where the information was
located in statute or within the bill. He was amenable to
receiving the response at a later time if needed.
Mr. Hull responded that Section 1 on page 2 established
that the minor's parent or legal guardian or another adult
approved by the person in charge may request the
confidential communication. He noted that the language had
been added in the bill.
Representative Bynum asked Mr. Hull to repeat the section
and location in the bill.
Mr. Hull answered that the language was on Section 1, page
2, line 1 of the bill. He restated the bill language.
Representative Bynum observed that page 1 of the bill
stated that a minor had the right unless prohibited by a
court order or law to have confidential communication. He
thought page 2 made it sound like a parent had to request
to have the confidential communication. He wanted to ensure
the parent had the right to confidential communication. He
was amenable to receiving clarification on his question at
a later time.
4:40:37 PM
Representative Hannan asked for verification the bill would
impact two hospitals including Alaska Psychiatric Institute
(API) and a private hospital. She believed they were the
only two hospitals currently treating minors in closed
custody psychiatric care.
Representative Dibert replied affirmatively.
Representative Hannan asked if the sponsor had explored
making the bill slightly broader to include hospitals with
closed psychiatric units. She wondered whether they had
been excluded because they did not take kids for the long-
term or if there was another legal reason.
Representative Dibert responded that the bill focused on
psychiatric hospitals and she had not looked into expanding
beyond that. She thought it was something to be explored as
legislators learned more on how to help youth in the
facilities. She appreciated the thought.
Representative Hannan stressed the importance of the bill.
She wanted to ensure they were capturing as many
circumstances as possible where kids would be impacted. She
considered it may be that the state licensure of treatment
facilities could cover it in regulatory processes versus
statute. She referenced separate legislation that would
stand up alternative treatment facilities like group homes.
She noted the bill had not yet passed and regulations had
not been written. She wanted to ensure the same legal
protections in HB 52 would be applied to any additional
facilities that may open in the future. She noted she was
jumping ahead to the vision where there would be treatment
facilities to bring home kids who were currently not able
to be treated in Alaska.
Representative Dibert replied that she appreciated
Representative Hannan's remarks. She requested to hear a
response from the Department of Health.
4:44:07 PM
ROBERT NAVE, DIVISION OPERATIONS MANAGER, DIVISION OF
HEALTH CARE SERVICES, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH (via
teleconference), stated his understanding that the initial
reason for the bill focusing solely on psychiatric
hospitals was due to findings in a Department of Justice
report on Alaska. He relayed that it would be possible to
look into expansion if it was needed in the future and it
may require an additional fiscal note.
Representative Bynum stated that Section 4 of the bill
addressed the right to have access to inspections and set
standards for interviews of patients [50 percent of
patients], and the number of times inspections could occur.
He asked if there was an established guideline that
informed the specific portion of the bill. Alternatively,
he wondered if the language had been selected because it
had been determined to be a good thing to do.
Mr. Hull responded that the origin of the number came from
other states that had instituted the requirement. He
believed 30 other states had implemented some form of
instate inspection. The 50 percent originated from Montana
and a number of states had stepped up to ensure instate
child psychiatric standards of care were rising.
Representative Bynum highlighted that the fiscal note added
personnel to the Department of Health (DOH). He observed
there would be an elevated need in order to fulfil the
requirements of the law. He wondered if there would be any
negative impact if the department was unable to hire for
the position.
Mr. Nave responded that currently the Health Care Facility
Licensing and Certification program was at critical mass
with regard the current need and staffing. He stated that
if the department was unable to hire the new position, it
would be difficult to impossible to meet the requirements
of the bill.
Representative Bynum surmised that language in Section 4
provided the right for DOH to perform the activities, but
it would not necessarily mean the state would be in breach
of law or requirement if it was unable to fulfil two
[inspections] per year and [interview] 50 percent [of the
minor patients in a facility]. He asked if his
understanding was accurate.
Mr. Hull responded that to his knowledge there was no
punishment language for not fulfilling the items [set out
in Section 4 of the bill].
4:48:34 PM
Representative Dibert added that if there was a body to
collect data from the institutions, there would be a report
which would be provided to the legislature at the end of
the year. She explained that it could provide information
on the transparency of the system in the state. She
remarked that if there was no one providing the data, a
substantial amount of work was needed in the area.
Representative Bynum supported the language in Section 4,
specifically the requirement for unannounced inspections.
He noted that hospitals had requirements where a survey was
done, which was usually unannounced at least once a year.
He pointed out that the language used in the bill stated
DOH shall do the work. His only concern was about the
state's ability to fill positions, and he thought the
position under the bill would require technical
competencies that may be difficult. He wanted to make sure
it did not result in a noncompliant situation that may put
the state in jeopardy.
4:50:09 PM
Co-Chair Foster noted that he intended to take a recess for
dinner.
Representative Jimmie highlighted that traveling from rural
Alaska to urban areas was extremely hard on a child. She
believed the inability for a child to communicate with
their parents would contribute to a worsening of the
child's condition.
Representative Dibert appreciated the comments from
Representative Jimmie. She agreed that children were being
sent far from home and the bill was aiming to protect them.
She thanked Representative Jimmie, Enaa baasee'.
Co-Chair Foster set an amendment deadline for Friday, May
16 at 5:00 p.m.
HB 52 was HEARD and HELD in committee for further
consideration.
4:52:18 PM
RECESSED
6:45:32 PM
RECONVENED
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB39 HFIN Follow Up to 5.9.25 Hearing.pdf |
HFIN 5/15/2025 1:30:00 PM |
SB 39 |
| HB052 Additional Documents - Alaska Disability Law Center Findings 05.07.25.pdf |
HFIN 5/15/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 52 |
| HB052 Additional Document - DOJ Investigation of the State of Alaska Behavioral Health System for Children 05.07.25.pdf |
HFIN 5/15/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 52 |
| HB052 Legal Memo - Dibert 05.07.25.pdf |
HFIN 5/15/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 52 |
| HB052 Legal memo - Fields 05.07.25.pdf |
HFIN 5/15/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 52 |
| HB052 Public Testimony Rec'd by 03.25.25.pdf |
HFIN 5/15/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 52 |
| HB052 Sectional Analysis Version 34-LS0399 G, 05.14.25.pdf |
HFIN 5/15/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 52 |
| HB052 Sponsor Statement Version 34-LS0399 G, 05.07.25.pdf |
HFIN 5/15/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 52 |
| HB052 Summary of Changes Version 34-LS0399 G , 05.07.25.pdf |
HFIN 5/15/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 52 |
| HB 193 Public Testimony Rec'd by 051525.pdf |
HFIN 5/15/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 193 |