{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-210.520","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 210.520","heading":"Enactment of compact.","body":"The interstate compact on mental health is hereby enacted into law and entered into by\nthis state with all other states legally joining therein as follows:\nThe contracting states solemnly agree that:\nARTICLE I\nThe party states find that the proper and expeditious treatment of the mentally ill\nand mentally deficient can be facilitated by cooperative action, to the benefit of the\npatients, their families, and society as a whole. Further, the party s tates find that the\nnecessity of and desirability for furnishing such care and treatment bears no primary\nrelation to the residence or citizenship of the patient but that, on the contrary, the\ncontrolling factors of community safety and humanitarianism req uire that facilities and\nservices be made available for all who are in need of them. Consequently, it is the\npurpose of this compact and of the party states to provide the necessary legal basis for the\ninstitutionalization or other appropriate care and tre atment of the mentally ill and\nmentally deficient under a system that recognizes the paramount importance of patient\nwelfare and to establish the responsibilities of the party states in terms of such welfare.\nARTICLE II\nAs used in this compact:\n(a) \"Sending state\" shall mean a party state from which a patient is transported\npursuant to the provisions of the compact or from which it is contemplated that a patient\nmay be so sent;\n(b) \"Receiving state\" shall mean a party state to which a patient is transported\npursuant to the provisions of the compact or to which it is contemplated that a patient\nmay be so sent;\n(c) \"Institution\" shall mean any hospital or other facility maintained by a party\nstate or political subdivision thereof for the care and treatment of mental illness or mental\ndeficiency;\n(d) \"Patient\" shall mean any person subject to or eligible as determined by the\nlaws of the sending state, for institutionalization or other care, treatment, o r supervision\npursuant to the provisions of this compact;\n(e) \"After-care\" shall mean care, treatment and services provided a patient, as\ndefined herein, on convalescent status or conditional release;\n(f) \"Mental illness\" shall mean mental disease to suc h extent that a person so\nafflicted requires care and treatment for his own welfare, or the welfare of others, or of\nthe community;\n(g) \"Mental deficiency\" shall mean mental deficiency as defined by appropriate\nclinical authorities to such extent that a p erson so afflicted is incapable of managing\nhimself and his affairs, but shall not include mental illness as defined herein;\n(h) \"State\" shall mean any state, territory or possession of the United States, the\nDistrict of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.\nARTICLE III\n(a) Whenever a person physically present in any party state shall be in need of\ninstitutionalization by reason of mental illness or mental deficiency, he shall be eligible\nfor care and treatment in an institution in that state irrespective of his residence,\nsettlement or citizenship qualifications.\n(b) The provisions of paragraph (a) of this article to the contrary notwithstanding,\nany patient may be transferred to an institution in another state whenever there are factors\nbased upon clinical determinations indicating that the care and treatment of said patient\nwould be facilitated or improved thereby. Any such institutionalization may be for the\nentire period of care and treatment or for any portion or portions thereof. The factors\nreferred to in this paragraph shall include the patient's full record with due regard for the\nlocation of the patient's family, character of the illness and probable duration thereof, and\nsuch other factors as shall be considered appropriate.\n(c) No state shall be obliged to receive any patient pursuant to the provisions of\nparagraph (b) of th is article unless the sending state has given advance notice of its\nintention to send the patient; furnished all available medical and other pertinent records\nconcerning the patient; given the qualified medical or other appropriate clinical\nauthorities of the receiving state an opportunity to examine the patient if said authorities\nso wish; and unless the receiving state shall agree to accept the patient.\n(d) In the event that the laws of the receiving state establish a system of priorities\nfor the admissi on of patients, an interstate patient under this compact shall receive the\nsame priority as a local patient and shall be taken in the same order and at the same time\nthat he would be taken if he were a local patient.\n(e) Pursuant to this compact, the dete rmination as to the suitable place of\ninstitutionalization for a patient may be reviewed at any time and such further transfer of\nthe patient may be made as seems likely to be in the best interest of the patient.\nARTICLE IV\n(a) Whenever, pursuant to the laws of the state in which a patient is physically\npresent, it shall be determined that the patient should receive after -care or supervision,\nsuch care or supervision may be provided in a receiving state. If the medical or other\nappropriate clinical authorities having responsibility for the care and treatment of the\npatient in the sending state shall have reason to believe that after -care in another state\nwould be in the best interest of the patient and would not jeopardize the public safety,\nthey shall request the appropriate authorities in the receiving state to investigate the\ndesirability of affording the patient such after -care in said receiving state, and such\ninvestigation shall be made with al l reasonable speed. The request for investigation shall\nbe accompanied by complete information concerning the patient's intended place of\nresidence and the identity of the person in whose charge it is proposed to place the\npatient, the complete medical his tory of the patient, and such other documents as may be\npertinent.\n(b) If the medical or other appropriate clinical authorities having responsibility for\nthe care and treatment of the patient in the sending state and the appropriate authorities in\nthe receiving state find that the best interest of the patient would be served thereby, and if\nthe public safety would not be jeopardized thereby, the patient may receive after -care or\nsupervision in the receiving state.\n(c) In supervising, treating, or caring f or a patient on after -care pursuant to the\nterms of this article, a receiving state shall employ the same standards of visitation,\nexamination, care, and treatment that it employs for similar local patients.\nARTICLE V\nWhenever a dangerous or potentially dangerous patient escapes from an institution\nin any party state, that state shall promptly notify all appropriate authorities within and\nwithout the jurisdiction of the escape in a manner reasonably  calculated to facilitate the\nspeedy apprehension of the escapee. Immediately upon the apprehension and\nidentification of any such dangerous or potentially dangerous patient, he shall be detained\nin the state where found pending disposition in accordance with law.\nARTICLE VI\nThe duly accredited officers of any state party to this compact, upon the\nestablishment of their authority and the identity of the patient, shall be permitted to\ntransport any pat ient being moved pursuant to this compact through any and all states\nparty to this compact, without interference.\nARTICLE VII\n(a) No person shall be deemed a patient of more than one institution at any  given\ntime. Completion of transfer of any patient to an institution in a receiving state shall have\nthe effect of making the person a patient of the institution in the receiving state.\n(b) The sending state shall pay all costs of and incidental to the tr ansportation of\nany patient pursuant to this compact, but any two or more party states may, by making a\nspecific agreement for that purpose, arrange for a different allocation of costs as among\nthemselves.\n(c) No provision of this compact shall be constru ed to alter or affect any internal\nrelationships, among the departments, agencies and officers of and in the government of a\nparty state, or between a party state and its subdivisions, as to the payment of costs, or\nresponsibility therefor.\n(d) Nothing in  this compact shall be construed to prevent any party state or\nsubdivision thereof from asserting any right against any person, agency or other entity in\nregard to costs for which such party state or subdivision thereof may be responsible\npursuant to any provision of this compact.\n(e) Nothing in this compact shall be construed to invalidate any reciprocal\nagreement between a party state and a non -party state relating to institutionalization, care\nor treatment of the mentally ill or mentally deficient, or a ny statutory authority pursuant\nto which such agreements may be made.\nARTICLE VIII\n(a) Nothing in this compact shall be construed to abridge, diminish, or in any way\nimpair the rights, duties, and r esponsibilities of any patient's guardian on his own behalf\nor in respect of any patient for whom he may serve, except that where the transfer of any\npatient to another jurisdiction makes advisable the appointment of a supplemental or\nsubstitute guardian, any court of competent jurisdiction in the receiving state may make\nsuch supplemental or substitute appointment and the court which appointed the previous\nguardian shall upon being duly advised of the new appointment, and upon the satisfactory\ncompletion of such accounting and other acts as such court may by law require, relieve\nthe previous guardian of power and responsibility to whatever extent shall be appropriate\nin the circumstances; provided, however, that in the case of any patient having settlement\nin the sending state, the court of competent jurisdiction in the sending state, shall have the\nsole discretion to relieve a guardian appointed by it or continue his power and\nresponsibility, whichever it shall deem advisable. The court in the receiving sta te may, in\nits discretion, confirm or reappoint the person or persons previously serving as guardian\nin the sending state in lieu of making a supplemental or substitute appointment.\n(b) The term \"guardian\" as used in paragraph (a) of this article shall in clude any\nguardian, trustee, legal committee, conservator, or other person or agency however\ndenominated who is charged by law with power to act for or responsibility for the person\nor property of a patient.\nARTICLE IX\n(a) No provision of this compact except Article V shall apply to any person\ninstitutionalized while under sentence in a penal or correctional institution or while\nsubject to trial on a criminal charge, or whose institutionalization i s due to the\ncommission of an offense for which in the absence of mental illness or mental deficiency,\nsaid person would be subject to incarceration in a penal or correctional institution.\n(b) To every extent possible, it shall be the policy of states par ty to this compact\nthat no patient shall be placed or detained in any prison, jail or lockup, but such person\nshall, with all expedition, be taken to a suitable institutional facility for mental illness or\nmental deficiency.\nARTICLE X\n(a) Each party state shall appoint a \"compact administrator\" who, on behalf of his\nstate, shall act as general coordinator of activities under the compact in his state and who\nshall receive copies of all reports, corr espondence, and other documents relating to any\npatient processed under the compact by his state either in the capacity of sending or\nreceiving state. The compact administrator or his duly designated representative shall be\nthe official with whom other par ty states shall deal in any matter relating to the compact\nor any patient processed thereunder.\n(b) The compact administrators of the respective party states shall have power to\npromulgate reasonable rules and regulations to carry out more effectively the  terms and\nprovisions of this compact.\nARTICLE XI\nThe duly constituted administrative authorities of any two or more party states may\nenter into supplementary agreements for the provision of any service or facility or for the\nmaintenance of any institution on a joint or cooperative basis whenever the stat es\nconcerned shall find that such agreements will improve services, facilities, or institutional\ncare and treatment in the fields of mental illness or mental deficiency. No such\nsupplementary agreement shall be construed so as to relieve any party state of  any\nobligation which it otherwise would have under other provisions of this compact.\nARTICLE XII\nThis compact shall enter into full force and effect as to any state when enacted by it\ninto law and suc h state shall thereafter be a party thereto with any and all states legally\njoining therein.\nARTICLE XIII\n(a) A state party to this compact may withdraw therefrom by enacting a statute\nrepealing the sam e. Such withdrawal shall take effect one year after notice thereof has\nbeen communicated officially and in writing to the governors and administrators of all\nother party states. However, the withdrawal of any state shall not change the status of any\npatient who has been sent to said state or sent out of said state pursuant to the provisions\nof the compact.\n(b) Withdrawal from any agreement permitted by Article VII (b) as to costs or\nfrom any supplementary agreement made pursuant to Article XI shall be in a ccordance\nwith the terms of such agreement.\nARTICLE XIV\nThis compact shall be liberally construed so as to effectuate the purposes thereof.\nThe provisions of this compact shall be severable and if any phrase, clause, sentence or\nprovision of this compact is declared to be contrary to the constitution of any party state\nor of the United States or the applicability thereof to any government, agency, person or\ncircumstance is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of this compact and the\napplicability thereof to any government, agency, person or circumstance shall not be\naffected thereby. If this compact shall be held contrary to the constitution of any state\nparty thereto, the compact shall remain in full force and effect as to the remaining states\nand in full force and effect as to the state affected as to all severable matters.","path":["KRS Chapter 210"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=8295","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:52:11Z","sha256":"468f07304c64f35a979d3a1243b65986b77d80a27ca4548da3124d9052627acc","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-210.509","next":"us-ky/krs-210.530"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}