Moseley celebrates passage of House Bill 1006

Members of the Indiana House of Representatives voted unanimously to send House Bill 1006 to the State Senate to be heard in committee. Authored by State Rep. Greg Steuerwald (R-Avon) and co-authored by State Rep. Chuck Moseley (D-Portage), the bill creates a local mental health referral program to help individuals who have been arrested and are in need of mental health services can get the help they need. Moseley offered the following statement today regarding its passage from the House:

“This bill represents a tremendous opportunity to help individuals in need and law enforcement officers alike. Right now, the Indiana Department of Corrections is the largest mental health care provider in the state, with county jails being the second largest provider. This burdens jails and corrections officers by tasking them with a level of care many facilities don't have the resources to effectively provide. House Bill 1006 would alleviate that burden and ensure those in need of mental health care are receiving the help they need. When a person is having a mental health crisis, they need medical care, not a jail cell. Keeping folks in jail unnecessarily is proven to increase their chances of committing a crime in the future. This bill would bolster mental health care in the state, free up jail cells and corrections officers to respond to actual dangerous offenders and, in doing so, would enhance public safety throughout the state.  Too many Hoosier families have had to make the difficult decision of calling the police on a loved one having a mental health crisis to keep them and others safe. When that happens, we need to have the infrastructure in place to ensure they're getting the health care they need. This bill allows officers to make the determination to detain an individual – with strict parameters in place to protect individual liberties – and refer them to a healthcare facility where they can get the resources they need to get better.

“I'm incredibly proud to have worked on this bill and to be a co-author, and I encourage my colleagues in the Senate to pass this bill to the Governor's desk.”