Washington State does not have the robust continuum of treatment and services necessary to prevent and mitigate behavioral health crises. Our current involuntary civil commitment system is therefore strained and is failing the most vulnerable patients. Civilly committed individuals can spend days or weeks in hospital emergency rooms or may simply be released to the streets because the facilities that are licensed and certified to provide them with care refuse to take them.
Disability Rights Washington’s (DRW) newest report, ALL OR NOTHING Ending Washington’s Dependence On Involuntary Civil Commitment, examines the gaps in Washington’s behavioral health treatment and crisis response systems, and the systemic failures in the involuntary civil commitment system that has resulted in the increased use of harmful Single Bed Certifications (“SBCs” ) and No Bed Reports (“NBRs”). ALL OR NOTHING provides clear, sensible action steps Washington can take to deliver the right care at the right time.
