Lords vote to exclude mental health patients from delayed discharge fines

Peers in the House of Lords passed an amendment to the Community
Care (Delayed Discharge) Bill excluding  mental health patients
from the controversial fining system, writes Katie
Leason.

The peers also approved a second amendment saying that a patient
or their carer must be consulted, and their informed consent
obtained, before they can be passed over into the care of social
services.

Conservative peer Earl Howe said that the discharge from
hospital of people with mental health problems required
“considerable care”, and that making a judgement on whether or not
a person was likely to harm themselves or others “cannot be made in
a hurry”.

He warned that there might also be a temptation to use
medication to manage symptoms to enable a quicker discharge.