Bill > HB83

This bill amends existing law to modify the age at which minors can independently consent to mental health treatment, raising the age from fourteen to sixteen years old. Under the new provisions, minors who are sixteen to eighteen years old can consent to voluntary inpatient or outpatient mental health treatment without parental consent. The bill also establishes a process for court review if a minor objects to continued inpatient treatment, requiring the court to determine whether the treatment is in the minor's best interest based on specific criteria, such as having a diagnosed, treatable mental disorder and using the least restrictive treatment setting. Additionally, the bill addresses liability for healthcare providers, stating that they can be held liable for decisions made by minors seeking treatment without parental consent. The legislation includes an exemption for minors with special needs, defined as individuals with significantly subaverage intellectual functioning and limitations in adaptive skills, who must have these conditions onset before their twenty-second birthday. The bill will take effect 60 days after enactment.

Health and Social Services

https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/bill_history.cfm?syear=2025&sind=0&body=H&type=B&bn=83