Judges: JOHN CORNYN, Attorney General of Texas
Filed Date: 2/8/2002
Status: Precedential
Modified Date: 4/17/2021
Office of the Attorney General — State of Texas John Cornyn Ms. Karen F. Hale Commissioner Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation P.O. Box 12668 Austin, Texas 78711-2668
Re: Whether a federally-funded state protective and advocacy system for persons with mental illness or developmental disabilities may have access to a person and his or her records over the objection of the person's guardian (RQ-0427-JC)
Dear Commissioner Hale:
The federal government provides funding to states that establish a system to protect and advocate for the rights of persons with mental illness and developmental disabilities. See 42 U.S.C. § 10801-10851 (1994 Supp. V 1999) (the Protection and Advocacy for Mentally Ill Individuals Act, or "PAMII Act"); id. §§ 15041-15045 (the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act, or "DD Act"). In exchange for federal funding, the state protection and advocacy system ("P A system") must comply with federal law. Among the requirements of federal law is that a P A system have access to persons with mental illness or developmental disabilities, and to their records, in order to provide information, investigate complaints, and perform other functions specified by law. The terms and conditions of such access are laid out in detail in federal statutes and regulations. You ask whether a P A system may have access to a person with a mental illness or developmental disability, and the person's records, when the person's legal guardian objects to such access. We conclude, based on the plain language of federal statues and regulations, on the underlying purpose of the PAMII and DD Acts and regulations, and on court interpretations of the Acts, that a P A system may have access to a person with a mental illness or developmental disability, and to the person's records, under the circumstances and according to the procedures prescribed by law, even if the legal guardian of the person objects to such access.
The PAMII Act and the DD Act were enacted by Congress in order to address what it found to be deplorable conditions in public and private facilities housing persons with mental illness and developmental disabilities. See
In Texas, the designated state P A system is Advocacy, Incorporated ("Advocacy, Inc.").1 You tell us that the guardians of a number of patients with mental illness or developmental disabilities who reside in facilities operated by the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation ("TDMHMR") have asked the department to deny Advocacy, Inc. access to the patients and their records. "The guardians contend that they have the ultimate authority to decide whether or not their ward is to be contacted by personnel from Advocacy, Inc., and whether or not the ward's records are to be reviewed."2 Advocacy, Inc., conversely, argues that federal laws and regulations allow P A systems to have access to patients and their records, under certain circumstances, irrespective of guardian consent. In light of these conflicting views, you ask the following three questions:
1. May Texas' P A system, Advocacy, Inc., have access to individuals (both persons with mental illness and persons with mental retardation/developmental disabilities) receiving services in TDMHMR facilities when these same individuals' guardians have specifically refused to allow such access?
2. May Advocacy, Inc., access the records of an individual (both persons with mental illness and persons with mental retardation/developmental disabilities) under either
42 U.S.C.A § 10805 (a)(4)(C)(i-iii) or42 U.S.C.A § 15043 (a)(2)(I)(iii)(I-V) when that person's guardian has specifically refused to allow access after being offered assistance by the P A system, as described in each statute?3. Does the P A system authorize different levels of access to individuals and records (over the objections of guardians) for each of the various functions the P A is authorized to perform, for example, investigating alleged abuse/neglect or overseeing facilities?
Request Letter, supra note 2, at 2-3.
We conclude, based on the plain language of federal statutes and regulations, on the underlying purpose of the PAMII and DD Acts and regulations, and on court interpretations of the Acts, that a P A system may have access to a person with a mental illness or developmental disability, and to the person's records, under the circumstances and according to the procedures prescribed by law, even if the legal guardian of the person objects to such access. Although Texas law grants legal guardians the right of care, control, and protection of their wards, see
Tex. Prob. Code Ann. §
We will address your first two questions in the following two sections of this opinion. Your third question will be addressed within those two sections as it relates to each of the questions.
(b) A P A system shall have reasonable unaccompanied access to public and private facilities and programs in the State which render care or treatment for individuals with mental illness, and to all areas of the facility which are used by residents or are accessible to residents. The P A system shall have reasonable unaccompanied access to residents at all times necessary to conduct a full investigation of an incident of abuse or neglect. This authority shall include the opportunity to interview any facility service recipient, employee, or other persons, including the person thought to be the victim of such abuse, who might be reasonably believed by the system to have knowledge of the incident under investigation. Such access shall be afforded, upon request, by the P A system when:
(1) An incident is reported or a complaint is made to the P A system;
(2) The P A system determines there is probable cause to believe that an incident has or may have occurred; or
(3) The P A system determines that there is or may be imminent danger of serious abuse or neglect of an individual with mental illness.
(c) In addition to access as prescribed in paragraph (b) of this section, a P A system shall have reasonable unaccompanied access to facilities including all areas which are used by residents, are accessible to residents, and to programs and their residents at reasonable times, which at a minimum shall include normal working hours and visiting hours. Residents include adults or minors who have legal guardians or conservators. P A activities shall be conducted so as to minimize interference with facility programs, respect residents' privacy interests, and honor a resident's request to terminate an interview. This access is for the purpose of:
(1) Providing information and training on, and referral to programs addressing the needs of individuals with mental illness, and information and training about individual rights and the protection and advocacy services available from the P A system, including the name, address, and telephone number of the P A system.
(2) Monitoring compliance with respect to the rights and safety of residents; and
(3) Inspecting, viewing and photographing all areas of the facility which are used by residents or are accessible to residents.
(d) Unaccompanied access to residents shall include the opportunity to meet and communicate privately with individuals regularly, both formally and informally, by telephone, mail and in person. Residents include minors or adults who have legal guardians or conservators.
(e) The right of access specified in paragraph (c) of this section shall apply despite the existence of any State or local laws or regulations which restrict informal access to minors and adults with legal guardians or conservators. The system shall make [e]very effort to ensure that the parents of minors or guardians of individuals in the care of a facility are informed that the system will be monitoring activities at the facility and may in the course of such monitoring have access to the minor or adult with a legal guardian. The system shall take no formal action on behalf of individuals with legal guardians or conservators, or initiate a formal attorney/client or advocate/client relationship without appropriate consent, except in emergency situations as described in Sec. 51.41(b)(3).
The DD Act and corresponding regulations require substantially the same right of access to developmentally disabled individuals as a condition of federal funding. See
Regulations adopted by the United States Department of Health and Human Services set out in more detail the circumstances under which a P A system may have access to a person with developmental disabilities:
(f) Access to Facilities and Individuals with Developmental Disabilities — A system shall have reasonable unaccompanied access to public and private facilities which provide services, supports, and other assistance for individuals with developmental disabilities in the State when necessary to conduct a full investigation of an incident of abuse or neglect under section 142(a)(2)(B) of the Act. This authority shall include the opportunity: to interview any facility service recipient, employee, or other person, including the person thought to be the victim of such abuse, who might be reasonably believed by the system to have knowledge of the incident under investigation; and to inspect, view and photograph all areas of the facility's premises that might be reasonably believed by the system to have been connected with the incident under investigation.
(g) Under section 142(a)(2)(H) of the Act, the system and all of its authorized agents shall have unaccompanied access to all residents of a facility at reasonable times, which at a minimum shall include normal working hours and visiting hours, for the purpose of:
(1) Providing information and training on, and referral to, programs addressing the needs of individuals with developmental disabilities, and the protection and advocacy services available from the system, including the name, address, and telephone number of the system and other information and training about individual rights; and
(2) Monitoring compliance with respect to the rights and safety of service recipients.
(h) Unaccompanied access to residents of a facility shall include the opportunity to meet and communicate privately with such individuals regularly, both formally and informally, by telephone, mail and in person.
In our view, the mental illness and developmental disabilities statutes and regulations clearly allow a P A system to have access to an individual, under the circumstances and according to the procedures set out in the statutes and regulations, irrespective of the consent of the individual's legal guardian. Nothing in the statutes or regulations requires guardian consent to access, and we do not believe that they imply any such requirement. The PAMII Act regulations expressly provide that the right of unaccompanied access by a P A system includes access to individuals with legal guardians, see
Courts are also of the view that guardian consent to access is not required. In Mississippi Protection Advocacy System, Inc. v.Cotten,
The mandatory provisions of section 6042 [now section 15043] relating to authority to investigate incidents of abuse and neglect are rendered nugatory by the Center's restrictions on MP A. Similarly, MP A is prevented from performing its statutory duty of establishing a grievance procedure for clients or prospective clients. The regulations are such that MP A has virtually no access to clients not retained prior to the change in the regulations. Most importantly, the Center's regulations render the state's requirement to "have in effect a system to protect and advocate the rights of persons with developmental disabilities" comatose if not moribund. The trial court did not err in finding a violation of the Act.
Cotten,
And in Iowa Protection Advocacy Services, Inc. v. Gerard TreatmentPrograms, L.L.C.,
Accordingly, we conclude that a P A system may have access to a person with a mental illness or a developmental disability residing in a care facility irrespective of guardian consent. In order for a state to receive federal funds pursuant to the PAMII and DD Acts, it must ensure that the state P A system has access to these individuals to the extent allowed and required by federal law. Access to Records
Both the PAMII Act and the DD Act set out in detail a P A system's right of access to patient records as a condition of a state's receipt of federal funds. The PAMII Act provides as follows:
§ 10805. System requirements
(a) A system established in a State under section 10803 of this title to protect and advocate the rights of individuals with mental illness shall —
. . . .
(4) in accordance with section 10806 of this title, have access to all records of —
(A) any individual who is a client of the system if such individual, or the legal guardian, conservator, or other legal representative of such individual, has authorized the system to have such access;
(B) any individual (including an individual who has died or whose whereabouts are unknown) —
(i) who by reason of the mental or physical condition of such individual is unable to authorize the system to have such access;
(ii) who does not have a legal guardian, conservator, or other legal representative, or for whom the legal guardian is the State; and
(iii) with respect to whom a complaint has been received by the system or with respect to whom as a result of monitoring or other activities (either of which result from a complaint or other evidence) there is probable cause to believe that such individual has been subject to abuse or neglect; and
(C) any individual with a mental illness, who has a legal guardian, conservator, or other legal representative, with respect to whom a complaint has been received by the system or with respect to whom there is probable cause to believe the health or safety of the individual is in serious and immediate jeopardy, whenever —
(i) such representative has been contacted by such system upon receipt of the name and address of such representative;
(ii) such system has offered assistance to such representative to resolve the situation; and
(iii) such representative has failed or refused to act on behalf of the individual;
. . . .
The DD Act and corresponding regulations are substantially similar:
(a) System required
In order for a State to receive an allotment under part B of this subchapter or this part —
(1) the state shall have in effect a system to protect and advocate the rights of individuals with developmental disabilities;
(2) such system shall
. . . .
(I) have access to all records of —
(i) any individual with a developmental disability who is a client of the system if such individual, or the legal guardian, conservator, or other legal representative of such individual, has authorized the system to have such access;
(ii) any individual with a developmental disability, in a situation in which —
(I) the individual, by reason of such individual's mental or physical condition, is unable to authorize the system to have such access;
(II) the individual does not have a legal guardian, conservator, or other legal representative, or the legal guardian of the individual is the State; and
(III) a complaint has been received by the system about the individual with regard to the status or treatment of the individual or, as a result of monitoring or other activities, there is probable cause to believe that such individual has been subject to abuse or neglect; and
(iii) any individual with a developmental disability, in a situation in which —
(I) the individual has a legal guardian, conservator, or other legal representative;
(II) a complaint has been received by the system about the individual with regard to the status or treatment of the individual or, as a result of monitoring or other activities, there is probable cause to believe that such individual has been subject to abuse or neglect;
(III) such representative has been contacted by such system, upon receipt of the name and address of such representative;
(IV) such system has offered assistance to such representative to resolve the situation; and
(V) such representative has failed or refused to act on behalf of the individual; . . . .
Courts have considered the question of whether a legal guardian's refusal to consent to access constitutes a failure or refusal to act, which would allow access to records by the P A system. See Iowa Prot.
The "plain meaning" of § 10805(a)(4) is that it grants the P A what might be described as "overriding" authority to obtain access to patients and their records, notwithstanding a guardian's "refusal or failure to act on behalf of the individual" upon the request of the P A for permission for such access. . . . . Looking at the statutory context of this language, . . . the purpose of access by a P A to records and patients is precisely for the purpose of "acting on behalf of the individual" residents of facilities by investigating actual or potential abuse or neglect. . . . . Thus, the guardian's "fail[ure] or refus[al] to act on behalf of the individual," in the context of the statute, includes the guardian's failure to consent to access by the P A.
Moreover, such a reading of the statute is in keeping with the "``object and policy'" of the PAMII Act, . . . and would best "effectuate the intent reflected in the language of the enactment and the legislative process."
Iowa Prot. Advocacy Servs.,
Even if there were a legal guardian applicable to the present action, the advocacy agency's statutory mandate to investigate abuse and neglect may trump any objections that the legal guardian has concerning access to the pertinent records. Recognizing the importance of having an advocacy group to protect the rights of institutionalized pat[i]ents, at least one court has held that even if the patient's guardian has told the advocacy agency or the institution that they do not want the advocacy agency to have access to the patient's records, the advocacy agency still has a right of access to the patient's records. See Iowa Prot. Advocacy Svcs., Inc. v. Gerard Treatment Programs L.L.C.,152 F. Supp. 2d 1150 ,1162-63 (N.D.Iowa 2001).
Advocacy Inc. v. Tarrant County Hosp. Dist., 2001 WL 1297688 *3 n. 5 (N.D. Tex 2001) (mem. op).
Courts have recognized that under the PAMII Act and DD Act, legal guardians retain an important role in protecting the interests of persons with mental illness or developmental disabilities. See Tarwater,
However, courts have found that P A systems have an "overriding" authority to access patients and their records. See, e.g., Iowa Prot.
Accordingly, based on the plain language of federal statutes and regulations, on the underlying purpose of the PAMII and DD Acts and regulations, and on court interpretations of these laws, P A systems may have access to individuals with mental illness or developmental disabilities, and their records, under the prescribed circumstances and procedures, irrespective of guardian consent.
Yours very truly,
JOHN CORNYN Attorney General of Texas
HOWARD G. BALDWIN, JR. First Assistant Attorney General
NANCY FULLER Deputy Attorney General — General Counsel
SUSAN DENMON GUSKY Chair, Opinion Committee
Barbara Griffin Assistant Attorney General
Robbins v. Budke , 739 F. Supp. 1479 ( 1990 )
Disability Law Center, Inc. v. Riel , 193 A.L.R. Fed. 777 ( 2001 )
Michigan Protection & Advocacy Service, Inc. v. Miller , 849 F. Supp. 1202 ( 1994 )
No. 95-6584 , 97 F.3d 492 ( 1996 )
Seiter v. Veytia , 31 Tex. Sup. Ct. J. 622 ( 1988 )
Fidelity Federal Savings & Loan Ass'n v. De La Cuesta , 102 S. Ct. 3014 ( 1982 )
Mississippi Protection & Advocacy System, Inc. v. Paul ... , 929 F.2d 1054 ( 1991 )
Iowa Protection & Advocacy Services, Inc. v. Gerard ... , 152 F. Supp. 2d 1150 ( 2001 )