MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2019 Regular Session
To: Corrections; Public Health and Human Services
By: Representative Blackmon
AN ACT TO PROVIDE THAT WHEN A MENTALLY ILL INMATE ESCAPES A CORRECTIONAL FACILITY, OR A PATIENT ESCAPES A MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT FACILITY, THE PUBLIC SHALL BE NOTIFIED OF THE MENTAL ILLNESS; TO DEFINE THE TERM "MENTAL ILLNESS"; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Notwithstanding any provision of the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), when an inmate escapes from any municipal, county or state correctional facility or when a patient escapes a mental health treatment facility, a designated law enforcement official shall include in the notification to the public, regarding the escape: (i) whether the inmate has been treated or is currently being treated for mental illness and (ii) whether such inmate may be a danger to the safety of the public due to the mental illness. As used in this section, "mental illness" shall have the same meaning as the term is defined in Section 41-21-61.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2019.