(Jan. 30, 2015) Two more California counties are considering implementing Laura’s Law for people with untreated severe mental illness.
Following its board of supervisors’ 4-1 vote last Tuesday, San Diego County will proceed in taking steps to implement Laura’s Law. The Law will give courts power to order treatment for people with severe mental illness under certain conditions (“Supervisors support Laura's Law,” UT San Diego, Jan. 27).
“This is one more tool in the toolbox,” said Supervisor Dianne Jacob. “It’s not going to fix everything, but it is something I believe is going to save lives.”
Contra Costa is also finally considering adopting Laura’s Law for its most vulnerable citizens. If enacted, the law will bring relief and protection to people with severe mental illness and their families.
Laura's Law is named after Laura Wilcox, who was shot to death in 2001 while working at a public mental health clinic in Nevada County. The man who shot Wilcox suffered from schizophrenia and had refused psychiatric treatment.
Under the law, people who have a mental illness, are potentially violent and who refuse treatment can be court-ordered to follow an assisted-outpatient treatment plan.
Studies show that court-ordered outpatient treatment laws such as Laura’s Law can vastly reduce overall costs of tax-supported services associated with severe mental illness by reducing expensive hospitalizations, arrests and incarcerations. Nevada County, which implemented Laura’s Law in 2008, estimates it saves $1.81 for every $1 invested. A Duke University study of New York’s assisted outpatient treatment (AOT) program found it reduced public costs so much that states could actually expand mental health services with the savings from having more people on AOT.
California has finally reached a tipping point as this lifesaving tool gains momentum across the state. Already, seven counties (Los Angeles, San Francisco, Orange, Nevada, Yolo, Placer and Mendocino) have embraced court-ordered outpatient treatment with wraparound services. That means more than 14 million Californians live in counties with Laura’s Law.
We applaud San Diego and Contra Costa counties for working to bring a proven treatment option to its most vulnerable populations.
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