Can they force you to take medication in a mental hospital?

You cannot legally be treated without your consent as a voluntary patient – you have the right to refuse treatment. This includes refusing medication that might be prescribed to you. (An exception to this is if you lack capacity to consent to treatment.)

Can a mentally ill person refuse treatment?

You can refuse any type of medical or mental health treatment, including medications; unless the situation is an emergency (see the “Definitions” section of this handbook for emergency treatment).

Should patients who are involuntarily committed have the right to refuse psychiatric treatment and medication?

The US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit categorically recognized that “involuntarily committed mentally ill patients have a constitutional right to refuse administration of antipsychotic drugs.”4 The court examined the requirements of due process necessary to abridge this right.

Can you reject a prescription?

Can the pharmacist refuse to fill my prescription? Yes, a pharmacist in his or her professional judgment may refuse to fill a prescription.

Is it legal to refuse medical treatment?

As a general matter, most of us are free to refuse unwanted medical treatment, even when such treatment may be in our best medical interests; in most circumstances, we may choose to decline blood transfusions, refuse to accept lifesaving cancer treatments, and decide not to vaccinate our children.

Can a person refuse treatment in a public psychiatric hospital?

For patients and families, this means that a person admitted to a public psychiatric hospital has a right to receive—and should receive—the standard of care delivered in any accredited psychiatric setting. It may seem odd that a person can be involuntarily admitted, or “committed,” to a hospital and then refuse treatment.

Can a person refuse to go to the hospital?

Someone who enters a hospital voluntarily and shows no imminent risk of danger to self or others may express the right to refuse treatment by stating he or she wants to leave the hospital. But a person admitted involuntarily, due to danger to self or others, cannot leave, at least not right away.

Can you involuntarily medicate a mentally ill prisoner?

Nevada, 504 U.S. 792, the Court was faced with the issue of involuntarily medicating a mentally ill prisoner.