At the last minute, the New Jersey Assembly Aging and Human Services Committee posted A3016, their agenda to be heard at 1 PM, room 15/4 floor in the State Annex Building in Trenton. The five-page bill actually amends current law. But it would add this new language to the law. The excerpt below is taken from page 3, starting at line 24.
24 When a minor who is 16 years of age or older believes that he or
25 she is in need of behavioral health care services for the treatment of
26 mental illness or emotional disorders and places a telephone call to
27 the New Jersey Suicide Hopeline for counseling and support, that
28 minor shall be allowed to consent to receive a follow-up call from
29 the operator of the hopeline who received and responded to the
30 minor’s original call without parental consent or authorization in
31 accordance with the provisions of P.L , c. (C. ) (pending
32 before the Legislature as this bill), and that consent shall be valid
33 and binding as if the minor had achieved the age of majority.
Parents must have due process. The United States Supreme Court has validated this in multiple decisions regarding parental rights, referencing the 14th Amendment.
A3016 puts a wall of separation between parents and children. This has been the consistent agenda of the New Jersey legislature for the past decade or more. There is no legitimate purpose for this new language in current law. The assumption of the current New Jersey legislature is that since a small minority of parents may be considered irresponsible or unsafe with their own children, then all parents are unsafe with their children.
Suicide is a serious matter. When a minor is suffering emotionally and feels the only way out is to commit suicide, their parents need to know. The vast majority of parents love their children. No one will love and protect a child more than a parent. This is the wrong approach to getting help for a child. What could be the possible motivation for a stranger in the suicide prevention call line to follow up and then suggest mental health intervention? We know that children's brains are not developed in the area of risk aversion, and reasoning does not develop until their mid-20s. A child's lack of knowledge and inability to understand the ramifications of seeking counseling, particularly when they are in a compromised emotional state and speaking to a stranger whose motives we do not know, cannot be permitted! Parental notification and authorization is a right, not a privilege.