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HB 7158 Connecticut House · 2025 Regular Session

AN ACT CONCERNING THE SECURE TRANSMISSION OF MINOR PATIENT SAFETY PLANS TO SCHOOLS BY HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS.

HB 7158 requires health care providers who create safety plans for minors receiving inpatient behavioral health treatment for 12+ consecutive days to obtain written consent from parents/guardians (or the minor if 16+) before sharing these plans with schools. Schools must set up secure messaging systems by January 2026 and designate staff like school nurses or counselors to receive these plans confidentially, separate from academic records. The bill ensures safety plans can only be shared with consent and adheres to existing privacy laws like HIPAA, without forcing providers to create plans or override minor patient confidentiality. It directly affects health care providers, schools, and minor patients by establishing a secure, consent-based process for sharing mental health crisis plans.
Issues: ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareRequires consent and secure sharing of minor behavioral health safety plans, protecting patient privacy and supporting mental health services through confidential transmission protocols.95% confidence ✓ TechnologySupports TechnologyMandates secure messaging systems for confidential health data transmission, directly strengthening data privacy protections through technological safeguards.92% confidence
Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Mar 2025
Committee Review
Mar 2025
House Passage
May 2025
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Mar 5, 2025 Last action May 19, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Raised Bill → PH Joint Favorable Substitute · 6 edits
MODERATE
The bill was amended to strengthen protections for minors receiving behavioral health treatment by requiring health care providers to create safety plans and transmit them securely to schools, and to develop discharge plans with broader stakeholder involvement. The effective date was changed from October 1, 2025 to July 1, 2025, and new requirements were added for secure data transmission and school contact information sharing.
Scope change
The bill now specifically applies to inpatient behavioral health care treatment for minors receiving care for longer than fourteen consecutive days, rather than all inpatient health care treatment. It also adds requirements for creating a state list of facilities providing such services.
TIMELINE

The effective date was moved forward from October 1, 2025 to July 1, 2025.

REQUIREMENT

Health care providers must now securely transmit safety plans to schools in compliance with HIPAA regulations, rather than just sending them by mail or email.

School nurses and nurse practitioners must provide contact information to health care providers to receive safety plans.

A new requirement mandates the Commissioner of Education and Commissioner of Public Health to create and maintain a list of hospitals and health care providers offering inpatient behavioral health services.

Discharge plans must now include consultation with school representatives such as school counselors, social workers, or administrators, not just the school itself.

SCOPE

Discharge plan requirements now apply only to minors receiving inpatient behavioral health care for more than fourteen consecutive days, and the plan must include the minor patient themselves as a consultation partner.

Floor votes · House May 15, 2025

How they voted

105–42
Passed · 4 other
Total votes 151
May 15, 2025
D Democratic102
99 Yea 3
97% Yea
R Republican49
6 Yea 42 Nay 1
85% Nay
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
14
Key actions
3
Committee
2
Amendments
1
May 15, 2025
Lower · Passed
HOUSE PASSED, HOUSE AMEND. SCH. A
lower
May 15, 2025
Lower · Passed
HOUSE ADOPTED HOUSE AMEND. SCH. A
lower
Mar 27, 2025
Lower · Passed
Joint Favorable Substitute
lower
Mar 5, 2025
Committee
REF. TO JOINT COMM. ON Public Health
lower
0 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

No sponsor information available.