S.I. No. 99/1954 - Mental Treatment Regulations, 1954.

S.I. No. 99 of 1954.

MENTAL TREATMENT REGULATIONS, 1954.

The Minister for Health, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by the Mental Treatment Act, 1945 (No. 19 of 1945), as amended by section 71 of the Health Act, 1953 (No. 26 of 1953), with the consent of the Minister for Finance to Article 3, hereby makes the following regulations :—

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Mental Treatment Regulations, 1954.

2. In these Regulations :

" the Act " means the Mental Treatment Act, 1945 ;

" an appeal " means an appeal under section 279A of the act ;

" the appeals officer " means a person appointed by the Minister to determine appeals under section 279A of the Act ;

" hearing " means an oral hearing.

3.—(1) Where mental hospital assistance is given to chargeable patients in cases not governed by subsection (2) of section 231A of the Act (not being cases of persons in any of the classes mentioned in paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of subsection (2) of section 15 of the Health Act, 1953 , or dependants of such persons), the charges approved or directed by the Minister towards the cost of such assistance shall be charged in the following cases instead of such charges as may, in pursuance of subsection (3) of the said section, be determined by the mental hospital authority :—

(a) persons (other than farmers) without any dependants or with only one dependant whose yearly means are six hundred pounds or more and dependants, if any, of such persons ;

(b) persons who are farmers without any dependants or with only one dependant the rateable valuation of the farm or farms (including the buildings thereon) being more than fifty pounds, and dependants of such persons ;

(c) persons (other than farmers) who have only two dependants and whose yearly means are seven hundred pounds or more, and dependants of such persons ;

(d) persons who are farmers with only two dependants, the rateable valuation of the farm or farms (including the buildings thereon) being more than fifty-five pounds, and dependants of such persons ;

(e) persons (other than farmers) who have only three dependants and whose yearly means are eight hundred pounds or more, and dependants of such persons ;

(f) persons who are farmers with only three dependants, the rateable valuation of the farm or farms (including the buildings thereon) being more than sixty pounds, and dependants of such persons ;

(g) persons (other than farmers) whose yearly means are nine hundred pounds or more, and dependants of such persons ;

(h) persons who are farmers, the rateable valuation of the farm or farms (including the buildings thereon) being more than sixty-five pounds, and dependants of such persons.

(2) In this Article, " farmer " means a person whose yearly means are, in the opinion of the health authority, derived wholly or mainly from farming.

4. Where a decision taken by a mental hospital authority in pursuance of paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of section 15 of the Health Act, 1953 , as applied by the Act, is a decision that the yearly means of an adult person are not less than six hundred pounds, the mental hospital authority shall, when notifying the person of the decision, inform him of his right of appeal under section 279A of The act, giving particulars of the person to whom and the time within which an appeal may be made.

5.—(1) A person appealing pursuant to section 279A of the Act shall give notice of his appeal in writing to the Appeals Officer, Department of Health, Custom House, Dublin.

(2) Every appeal shall be made within twenty-one days from the notification by the mental hospital authority of the decision against which the appeal is made or within such longer period as the appeals officer may, in any particular case, allow.

(3) A notice of appeal shall contain a statement of the facts and contentions upon which the appellant intends to rely.

(4) The appellant shall send to the appeals officer with the notice of appeal such documentary evidence as the appellant desires to adduce in support of the appeal and the notice shall contain a list of any such documents.

6. An appeal may be withdrawn at any time by sending to the appeals officer a written notice of withdrawal.

7. The appeals officer shall request the observations of the mental hospital authority on the appeal and may at any time require the appellant or the mental hospital authority to furnish to him, in writing, further particulars with respect to the appeal, and may,at any stage of the proceedings, allow the amendment of any notice of appeal, statement, or particulars and may fix the time for furnishing any statement or particulars upon such terms as he may think just.

8. If the appeals officer is of opinion that the appeal is of such a nature that it can properly be determined without a hearing, he may dispense with a hearing and may determine the appeal summarily.

9.—(1) If, in the opinion of the appeals officer, a hearing is required he shall, as soon as may be, fix a date and place for the hearing, and reasonable notice thereof shall be given to the appellant and the mental hospital authority and any other person appearing to be concerned in the appeal.

(2) The procedure at the hearing shall be such as the appeals officer may determine.

(3) The appellant may appear at the hearing in person or may be represented at the hearing by any member of his family or, with the consent of the appeals officer, by any other person.

(4) The manager for the mental hospital authority, or any other officer of that authority authorised in that behalf, may appear at the hearing.

(5) There may also appear at the hearing any other person who is concerned in the appeal or who, in the opinion of the appeals officer, should be heard.

(6) The appeals officer may postpone or adjourn the hearing from time to time as he may think fit.

(7) The appeals officer may, if he thinks fit, admit any duly authenticated written statement or other material as prima facie evidence of any fact or facts in any case in which he thinks it just and proper so to do.

(8) The appellant and the mental hospital authority shall not, without the leave of the appeals officer, be entitled to rely upon any facts or contentions other than those set out in the notice of appeal and in statements supplied in accordance with these Regulations.

10.—(1) If, after notice of a hearing has been duly given, either of the parties fails to appear at the hearing, such order or decision may be made, and such steps may be taken with a view to the determination of, or in reference to, the appeal as the appeals officer may think just.

(2) The appeals officer may consider and decide any question duly referred to him for consideration and determination, notwithstanding the failure or neglect of any person to comply with any requirement of these Regulations.

(3) The decision of the appeals officer shall be in writing signed by him and shall be sent, as soon as may be, to the mental hospital authority, to the appellant and to any other person concerned.

11. Any notice or other document required or authorised to be sent to any person for the purpose of these Regulations shall be deemed to be duly sent if sent by post addressed to him, in the case of the Appeals Officer, at the Department of Health, Custom House, Dublin, and, in any other case, at the ordinary address of such person.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Health this Fifteenth day of May, One Thousand Nine Hundred and Fifty-four.

SÉAMAS Ó RIAIN,

Minister for Health.