Colorado Code § 27-65-119

Rights of respondents certified for short-term treatment or long-term care and treatment
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(1) Each respondent certified for short-term treatment or long-term care
and treatment on an inpatient basis pursuant to sections 27-65-108.5, 27-65-109, and 27-65-110
has the following rights and shall be advised of such rights by the facility:
(a) To be treated fairly, with respect and recognition of the respondent's dignity and
individuality, by all employees of the facility with whom the respondent comes in contact;
(b) To not be discriminated against on the basis of age, race, ethnicity, religion, culture,
spoken language, physical or mental disability, socioeconomic status, sex, sexual orientation,
gender identity, or gender expression;
(c) To retain and consult with an attorney at any time;
(d) To meet with or call a personal clinician, spiritual advisor, counselor, crisis hotline,
family member, workplace, child care provider, or school at all reasonable times;
(e) To continue the practice of religion;
(f) Within twenty-four hours after the respondent's request, to see and receive the
services of a patient representative who has no direct or indirect clinical, administrative, or
financial responsibility for the person;
(g) To receive and send sealed correspondence, as well as to be given the assistance of
facility staff if the respondent is unable to write, prepare, or mail correspondence. Facility staff
shall not open, delay, intercept, read, or censor mail or other communications or use mail or
other communications as a method to enforce compliance with facility staff.
(h) To have the respondent's behavioral health orders for scope of treatment or
psychiatric advance directive reviewed and considered by the court as the preferred treatment
option for involuntary administration of medications unless, by clear and convincing evidence,
the respondent's directive does not qualify as effective participation in behavioral health
decision-making;
(i) To have reasonable access to telephones or other communication devices and to make
and receive calls or communications in private;
(j) To have frequent and convenient opportunities to meet with visitors;
(k) To see the respondent's attorney, clergyperson, or physician at any time;
(l) To wear the respondent's own clothes, keep and use the respondent's own personal
possessions, including the person's cell phone, and keep and be allowed to spend a reasonable
sum of the respondent's own money;
(m) To have the respondent's information and records disclosed to family members and a
lay person pursuant to section 27-65-123;
(n) To have the respondent's treatment records remain confidential, except as required by
law;
(o) To have appropriate access to adequate water, hygiene products, and food and to
have the respondent's nutritional needs met in a manner that is consistent with recognized dietary
practices;
(p) To have personal privacy to the extent possible during the course of treatment; and
(q) To have access to a representative within the facility who provides assistance to file a
grievance.
(2) A respondent's rights under subsection (1) of this section may be denied if access to
the item, program, or service would endanger the safety of the respondent or another person in
close proximity and may only be denied by a person involved in the respondent's care. Denial of
any right must be entered into the respondent's treatment record. Information pertaining to a
denial of rights contained in the respondent's treatment record must be made available, upon
request, to the respondent, the respondent's legal guardian, or the respondent's attorney.
(3) A respondent admitted to or in a facility must not be fingerprinted unless required by
other provisions of law.
(4) A respondent may be photographed upon admission for identification and the
administrative purposes of the facility. The photographs are confidential and must not be
released by the facility except pursuant to court order. Nonmedical photographs shall not be
taken or used without appropriate consent or authorization.
(5) Any respondent receiving evaluation or treatment under any of the provisions of this
article 65 is entitled to a written copy and verbal description in a language or modality accessible
to the person of all the rights enumerated in this section, and a minor child must receive written
notice of the minor's rights as provided in section 27-65-104 (6)(g). A list of the rights must be
prominently posted in all evaluation and treatment facilities in the predominant languages of the
community and explained in a language or modality accessible to the respondent. The facility
shall assist the respondent in exercising the rights enumerated in this section.
(6) A facility shall not intentionally retaliate or discriminate against a person or
employee for contacting or providing information to any official or to an employee of any state
protection and advocacy agency, or for initiating, participating in, or testifying in a grievance
procedure or in an action for any remedy authorized pursuant to this section. Any facility that
violates this subsection (6) commits an unclassified misdemeanor and shall be fined not more
than one thousand dollars.
(7) Any respondent whose rights are denied or violated pursuant to this section has the
right to file a compliant against the facility with the behavioral health administration and the
department of public health and environment.

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