37.2-500 - Purpose; community services board; services to be provided.
§ 37.2-500. Purpose; community services board; services to be provided.
The Department, for the purposes of establishing, maintaining, and promotingthe development of mental health, mental retardation, and substance abuseservices in the Commonwealth, may provide funds to assist any city or countyor any combinations of cities or counties or cities and counties in theprovision of these services. Every county or city shall establish a communityservices board by itself or in any combination with other cities andcounties, unless it establishes a behavioral health authority pursuant toChapter 6 (§ 37.2-600 et seq.) of this title. Every county or city or anycombination of cities and counties that has established a community servicesboard, in consultation with that board, shall designate it as an operatingcommunity services board, an administrative policy community services boardor a local government department with a policy-advisory community servicesboard. The governing body of each city or county that established thecommunity services board may change this designation at any time byordinance. In the case of a community services board established by more thanone city or county, the decision to change this designation shall be theunanimous decision of all governing bodies.
The core of services provided by community services boards within the citiesand counties that they serve shall include emergency services and, subject tothe availability of funds appropriated for them, case management services.The core of services may include a comprehensive system of inpatient,outpatient, day support, residential, prevention, early intervention, andother appropriate mental health, mental retardation, and substance abuseservices necessary to provide individualized services and supports to personswith mental illnesses, mental retardation, or substance abuse. Communityservices boards may establish crisis stabilization units that provideresidential crisis stabilization services.
In order to provide comprehensive mental health, mental retardation, andsubstance abuse services within a continuum of care, the community servicesboard shall function as the single point of entry into publicly funded mentalhealth, mental retardation, and substance abuse services.
(1968, c. 477, § 37.1-194; 1972, c. 498; 1974, c. 404; 1975, c. 200; 1976,cc. 41, 671; 1977, c. 90; 1980, c. 582; 1982, c. 295; 1984, c. 653; 1998, c.680; 2002, cc. 51, 278; 2005, c. 716; 2010, c. 28.)