53-21-133. Transfer to nonstate facilities. (1) If a person is committed under the provisions of this part and is eligible for hospital care or treatment by an agency of the United States and if a certificate of notification from the agency showing that facilities are available and that the person is eligible for care or treatment is received, the court may order the person to be placed in the custody of the agency for hospitalization. The chief officer of any hospital or institution operated by an agency and in which a person is hospitalized is vested with the same powers as the superintendent of the state hospital with respect to detention, custody, transfer, conditional release, or discharge of the person. Jurisdiction must be retained in the appropriate courts of this state to inquire into the mental condition of persons hospitalized under this section and to determine the necessity for continuance of their hospitalization.

(2) Consistent with other provisions of this part, a person committed under this part for a period of 3 months or longer may be committed by the court to the custody of friends or next of kin residing outside the state or to a mental health facility located outside the state if the out-of-state facility agrees to receive the patient. The commitment may not be for a longer period of time than is permitted within the state. If the patient is indigent, the expense of supporting the patient in an out-of-state facility and the expense of transportation must be borne by the state of Montana.

(3) The transfer out of Montana of persons committed under the provisions of this part or into Montana under the laws of another jurisdiction must be governed by the provisions of the Interstate Compact on Mental Health.