Gov. Phil Scott has signed into law two of the several mental health bills the Legislature passed this year.
Scott put his signature to H.230, which allows minors to consent to outpatient mental health counseling, and H.184, which directs the Agency of Human Services to research the causes of suicide.
He signed them Wednesday without fanfare.
The original version of H.230 would have allowed minors to seek mental health treatment without parental permission only for concerns related to their sexual orientation or gender identity.
The Senate later expanded the bill to include all reasons.
The Department of Mental Health and Department for Children and Families asked the Legislature to delay the new law until they could perform a study. Others raised questions about whether removing a parental consent requirement violated parents’ rights.
As a compromise, lawmakers agreed to have the law go into effect Jan. 1, instead of July 1.
H.184 was less controversial. The bill requires the Agency of Human Services to report back to the Legislature by Jan. 15 on trends, patterns and risk factors in suicide deaths. The state does not currently keep that type of qualitative data.
“I think mental health is something that is a concern for us here in the state, across the country,” Scott said at a news conference Friday. “I think that’s partly one of our large issues that’s looming on all of us.”
“It affects our economy. It affects the well-being of Vermonters, and so I think we have an obligation to do what we can, and I thought this was a step in the right direction,” Scott said.
