Colorado § 27-65-109.5 - Certification for short-term outpatient treatment.

§ 27-65-109.5. Certification for short-term outpatient treatment.

(1) A person may be certified for not more than three months for short-term outpatient treatment if a professional person or intervening professional acting within the scope of their authority and licensure:

(a) Has an established treatment relationship with the person, including having provided care to the person in the past three months, which care forms the basis for requesting the outpatient certification;

(b) Has evaluated the person within the past three months and opined that the person meets the criteria for certification for short-term treatment pursuant to section 27-65-108.3 (1); and

(c) Files with the court a signed outpatient certification.

(2) (a) The professional person or intervening professional acting within the scope of their authority and licensure is the petitioner.

(b) Prior to filing the petition, the petitioner shall:

(I) Ask the respondent to designate a lay person whom the respondent wishes to be informed regarding the outpatient certification;

(II) Provide the respondent with a copy of the outpatient certification; and

(III) Provide the respondent with the contact information for the court in which the outpatient certification will be filed and for any designated provider that is willing to hold the outpatient certification and that has been identified by the commissioner to provide treatment.

(3) The signed outpatient certification must:

(a) State sufficient facts to establish reasonable grounds that the respondent meets the criteria set forth in section 27-65-108.3;

(b) Be filed with the court within fourteen days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and court holidays, after the initiating party received the court order from the criminal court initiating the outpatient certification, and a copy must be provided to CDHS and the BHA within twenty-four hours after filing the outpatient certification;

(c) Provide all contact information that the petitioner has for the respondent;

(d) Provide the name and contact information for the lay person designated by the respondent, or for any family or friends of the respondent if the respondent was unwilling or incapable of designating a lay person; and

(e) Identify any designated provider that is willing to hold the outpatient certification and that has been identified by the commissioner to provide treatment or include a statement that a designated provider needs to be identified.

(4) (a) If the petitioner has determined the respondent has a persistent mental health disorder, the notice of outpatient certification must state that the respondent has a persistent mental health disorder and include a summary of the respondent's history of emergency mental health holds invoked pursuant to section 27-65-106, certifications for short-term treatment or long-term care and treatment, findings of incompetency to proceed pursuant to article 8 or 8.5 of title 16, and inpatient psychiatric hospitalizations.

(b) In ruling upon any objection to the certification, the court shall consider the respondent's history of emergency mental health holds invoked pursuant to section 27-65-106, certifications for short-term treatment or long-term care and treatment, findings of incompetency to proceed pursuant to article 8 or 8.5 of title 16, and inpatient psychiatric hospitalizations, and whether the respondent qualifies as having a persistent mental health disorder.

(5) (a) Once the BHA receives the notice of outpatient certification, if no designated provider has been identified, the BHA shall provide care coordination pursuant to section 27-65-108, which includes making diligent efforts to identify a designated provider to hold the outpatient certification and provide care to the respondent. The BHA shall keep the court, petitioner, and county attorney informed in writing regarding any designated provider that will hold the outpatient certification and provide care to the respondent.

(b) Once a provider is designated to hold the outpatient certification, the provider shall notify the BHA if the provider has not made contact with the respondent within seven days after accepting the outpatient certification. The BHA shall notify the court in writing that the provider has not made contact with the respondent within seven days after accepting the outpatient certification.

(6) If the respondent has not designated a lay person whom the respondent wishes to be informed regarding the outpatient certification, the respondent must be asked and allowed to designate a lay person as soon as the respondent is capable and willing to do so.

(7) Whenever an outpatient certification is filed with the court by a professional person or intervening professional, the court shall immediately appoint an attorney to represent the respondent. The respondent has the right to an attorney for all proceedings conducted pursuant to this section, including any appeals. The attorney representing the respondent must be provided with a copy of the outpatient certification and all supporting documentation immediately upon the attorney's appointment. The respondent may only waive counsel when the respondent makes a knowing and intelligent waiver in front of the court.

(8) The respondent or the respondent's attorney may at any time file a written request that the certification for short-term treatment or the treatment be reviewed by the court. If a review is requested, the court shall hear the matter within ten days after the request, and the court shall give notice to the respondent and the respondent's attorney and the certifying and treating professional person or intervening professional of the time and place of the hearing. The hearing must be held in accordance with section 27-65-113.1. At the conclusion of the hearing, the court may enter or confirm the outpatient certification for short-term treatment, discharge the respondent, or enter any other appropriate order.

(9) This section does not require a court appearance if the respondent does not contest the outpatient certification and a designated provider is identified to hold the outpatient certification and the designated provider makes contact with the respondent within seven days after the designated provider begins holding the outpatient certification.

(10) The court shall set a hearing within thirty days if:

(a) The respondent requests to contest, modify, or terminate the outpatient certification;

(b) The outpatient certification was filed and a designated provider was not identified within seven days after the filing of the outpatient certification; or

(c) The designated provider did not make contact with the respondent within seven days after the designated provider began holding the outpatient certification.

(11) The court may set a court review or hearing for good cause shown at any time upon the request of a party, the county attorney responsible for proceedings, or the court's own motion.

(12) The BHA may receive and possess all information relevant to the proceedings pursuant to this section, including competency and mental health evaluations; any medical and mental health records for which a waiver or privilege has been found in proceedings pursuant to this section or pursuant to article 8 or 8.5 of title 16; and relevant criminal justice records, including any criminal history of the respondent. The BHA may share and discuss the relevant information with the parties to the proceedings.

(13) In accordance with the procedures described in section 27-65-112, a respondent certified for short-term treatment on an outpatient basis may be discharged upon the signature of the approved professional person overseeing the respondent's treatment, and the professional person shall notify the BHA prior to the discharge. A facility or program shall make the respondent's discharge instructions available to the respondent, the respondent's attorney, and the respondent's legal guardian, if applicable, within seven days after discharge, if requested. A facility or program that is transferring a respondent to a different treatment facility or to an outpatient provider shall provide all treatment records to the facility or provider accepting the respondent at least twenty-four hours prior to the transfer.

(14) If the professional person in charge of the evaluation and treatment believes that a period longer than three months is necessary to treat the respondent, the professional person shall file with the court an extended certification at least thirty days prior to the expiration date of the original certification. An extended certification for treatment must not be for a period of more than three months. The respondent is entitled to a hearing on the extended certification under the same conditions as an original certification. The attorney initially representing the respondent shall continue to represent the respondent, unless the court appoints another attorney.

(15) This section does not preclude any proceedings or actions pursuant to section 27-65-106, 27-65-108.5, or 27-65-109.

Source: L. 2026: Entire section added, (SB 26-149), ch. 142, p. 740, § 11, effective May 21.