PROVIDENCE – Patients hospitalized in Rhode Island for an overdose or mental health emergency may now receive further support after their discharge, thanks to a bill recently signed into law by Gov. Gina M. Raimondo.
The new law allows hospitals to contact patients’ emergency contact and a certified peer recovery specialist in some situations, aligning state law with new federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act guidance.
It was sponsored by Sen. Joshua Miller, D-Cranston, and House Majority Whip John G. Edwards, D-Portsmouth.
The legislation, 2019-S 0139A and 2019-H 5383, expands the Alexander C. Perry and Brandon Goldner Act, which helps ensure that patients treated at hospitals, clinics and urgent-care facilities for substance use or mental health disorders receive care and support after their discharge. The act, named for two people who died of overdoses during its development, requires discharge planning and insurers to cover medication-assisted treatment for substance use disorder.
The recent change is meant to increase the likelihood that patients’ families and others willing to assist them with treatment and recovery are aware of their hospitalization.
“Engaging patients’ personal support networks is critical to helping them recover and to ending the cycle of relapse and rehospitalization. The federal government has recognized that patients with addiction or mental health issues may be unwilling or unable to consent to contact their emergency contact or recovery coach,” Miller said. “Amending state law to allow hospitals to make those calls will help provide better treatment and connect patients to support when they are discharged.”
Edwards, who was selected as a 2019 Opioid Policy Fellow for the National Conference of State Legislatures, said the bill serves as another layer of help for those suffering from opioid addiction.
“By amending this successful law, Rhode Island will be more in tune with federal statute and allow hospitals to contact the people who are best suited to help them when they are discharged,” he said.
