The opioid crisis has spurred states to adopt new policies relating to involuntary commitment of individuals for substance use and addiction. This legal map at LawAtlas.org details these laws along a number of key parameters to assist researchers, policymakers, members of the media, and others in understanding the current landscape of civil commitment policy across the U.S. as it relates to substance use.
This map presents statutes and regulations that authorize the involuntary commitment of substance users, in effect as of March 1, 2018. It catalogs the statutory standards authorizing commitment, parties authorized to petition for a commitment, provisions surrounding clinical assessments, parameters of judicial review, time periods for commitment authorization, allowable treatment, and procedures for recommitment.
The dataset is maintained by the Health in Justice Action Lab at Northeastern University.