53-21-111. Voluntary admission. (1) Nothing in this part may be construed to limit the right of any person to make voluntary application for admission at any time to any mental health facility or professional person. An application for admission to a mental health facility must be in writing on a form prescribed by the facility and approved by the department. An application is not valid unless it is approved by a professional person and a copy is given to the person being voluntarily admitted. A statement of the rights of the person voluntarily applying for admission, as set out in this part, including the right to release, must be furnished to the patient within 12 hours.
     (2) Any applicant who wishes to voluntarily apply for admission to the state hospital shall first obtain certification from a professional person that the applicant is suffering from a mental disorder. The professional person shall then obtain confirmation from the department or the department's designee that the facilities available to the mental health region in which the applicant resides are unable to provide adequate evaluation and treatment. The department shall adopt rules to establish a procedure whereby a professional person shall obtain the confirmation from the department or the department's designee as required in this section.
     (3) An application for voluntary admission must give the facility the right to detain the applicant for no more than 5 days, excluding weekends and holidays, past the applicant's written request for release. A mental health facility may adopt rules providing for detention of the applicant for less than 5 days. The facility shall notify all applicants of the rules and post the rules as provided in 53-21-168.
     (4) Any person voluntarily entering or remaining in any mental health facility shall enjoy all the rights secured to a person involuntarily committed to the facility.

     History: En. 38-1303 by Sec. 3, Ch. 466, L. 1975; amd. Sec. 3, Ch. 546, L. 1977; R.C.M. 1947, 38-1303(1) thru (3), (6); amd. Sec. 3, Ch. 547, L. 1979; amd. Sec. 1, Ch. 603, L. 1985; amd. Sec. 10, Ch. 590, L. 1995.