New Mexico considers commitment law modeled on "Kendra's Law"

The issue of involuntary commitment of people with mental illness receives attention again as lawmakers in New Mexico consider a bill that would make the state the 43rd with a law allowing family members, doctors or others to seek a court order forcing the mentally ill into outpatient treatment. Typically under the laws, if mentally ill people refuse the treatment, they can face confinement in a hospital.

In this article, Harvey Rosenthal, Executive Director of the New York Association of Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services, cites a report on "Kendra's Law" prepared by NYLPI, which asserts that blacks are five times as likely as whites to face court orders. He states, "New York's law is not the model it is made out to be."

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