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26 November 2006 - Mental Health Bill
Introduced
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Protection for patients and the public is at the heart of Mental Health Bill
2006 which was published on 17 November 2006 and amends the Mental Health Act
1983. The Bill will both benefit patients and will improve public
safety. It will introduce supervised treatment in the community to
ensure that patients comply with treatment when they are discharged from
hospital and enable action to be taken to prevent relapse.
The Bill also gives new rights and extra protection to people who may be
unable to decide about their care. These new safeguards will affect
around 5,000 people with a serious mental disorder who have not, up until now,
been covered by existing mental health laws.
Rosie Winterton, Health Minister commented:
"We want people to get the right treatment at the right time. We want to
improve the safety of both patients and the public. This Bill will help ensure
that people with serious mental health problems receive the treatment they need
to protect them and others from harm. It will also strengthen patient safeguards
and ensure human rights are protected.
"We are already modernising services, and the Bill is a key part of our strategy
to reform and improve mental health care. It will update the law to reflect the
way mental healthcare is provided in today's NHS."
Home Office minister Gerry Sutcliffe also commented:
"Timely treatment for mental disorder is vital in preventing harm to
patients and to others. I look forward to doctors having powers to treat
patients in the community to address the revolving door problem before their
patients relapse and become involved in tragedies to themselves or to the
public."
The Bill amends the 1983 Mental Health Act and the Mental Capacity Act 2005
which was contained in the Queen's Speech 2006 and introduced on 16 November
2006.
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