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Official Code of Georgia Annotated

Title 37. MENTAL HEALTH · Chapter 2. ADMINISTRATION OF MENTAL HEALTH, DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES, ADDICTIVE DISEASES, AND OTHER DISABILITY SERVICES · Article 2. ADMINISTRATION OF MENTAL DISABILITY SERVICES · Part 1. OFFICE OF DISABILITY SERVICES OMBUDSMAN

37-2-30. Definitions.

Active

Current through: Including Acts of the 2025 Regular Session of the General Assembly.

  1. As used in this article, the term:

  2. (1)

    “Advance directive for health care” means a written document voluntarily executed by a patient in accordance with the requirements of Code Section 31-32-5.#

  3. (2)

    “Clinical record” means a written record pertaining to an individual consumer and shall include all medical records, progress notes, charts, admission and discharge data, and all other information which is recorded by a services provider or other entities responsible for a consumer’s care and treatment under this chapter and which pertains to the consumer’s hospitalization, treatment, or habilitation.#

  4. (3)

    “Consumer” means a natural person who has been or is a recipient of disability services as defined in Code Section 37-1-1 and shall include natural persons who are seeking disability services.#

  5. (4)

    “Durable power of attorney for health care” means a written document voluntarily executed by an individual creating a health care agency in accordance with Chapter 36 of Title 31, as such chapter existed on and before June 30, 2007.#

  6. (5)

    “Estate representative” means an executor, executrix, administrator, or administratrix of the estate of a deceased consumer.#

  7. (6)

    “Guardian” shall have the same meaning as provided in Code Section 29-1-1.#

  8. (7)

    “Health care agent” means an agent under a durable power of attorney for health care, a health care agent under an advance directive for health care, or a mental health care agent under a psychiatric advance directive.#

  9. (8)

    “Office” means the office of disability services ombudsman created pursuant to subsection (a) of Code Section 37-2-31.#

  10. (9)

    “Ombudsman” means the disability services ombudsman appointed as provided for in Code Section 37-2-32.#

  11. (9.1)

    “Psychiatric advance directive” means a written document voluntarily executed by a patient in accordance with the requirements of Code Section 37-11-9.#

  12. (10)

    “Rights” means such rights as provided by statute, rule, or regulation for a consumer of a services provider.#

  13. (11)

    “Services provider” means a public or private person, corporation, or business which provides disability services operated by the division, under letter of agreement with the division, or under contract with the division.#

  14. (12)

    “Safety” means freedom from physical harm.#

  15. (13)

    “Well-being” means quality of life of a consumer, including the environment of care.#

The notes below are printed with the section but are not enacted law (O.C.G.A. § 1-1-1(c)). They are shown apart from the text.

History

Code 1981, § 37-2-30, enacted by Ga. L. 2008, p. 133, § 3/HB 535; Ga. L. 2009, p. 453, § 3-11/HB 228; Ga. L. 2022, p. 611, § 2-22/HB 752.

Amendments

The 2022 amendment, effective July 1, 2022, in paragraph (7), substituted “health care, a health care agent” for “health care or health care agent” and added “, or a mental health care agent under a psychiatric advance directive” at the end; and added paragraph (9.1).

Law reviews

For article, “HB 752: Psychiatric Advance Directive Act,” see 39 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 191 (2022).

Read the official page (the state's PDF, opened at the page this text was read from).

Current through: Including Acts of the 2025 Regular Session of the General Assembly.

Text read from t37-t39-(v28)-pdf.pdf, Volume V28, 2021 edition, 2025 supplement, pages 57 to 59; merge action: replaced; file SHA-256 6e7899178423.