A North Carolina House committee voted on Tuesday to approve interim recommendations to improve public safety in the state, but lawmakers say they’re a long way from finishing their work on involuntary commitment.
The House Select Committee on Involuntary Commitment and Public Safety is recommending that county jails consider using telehealth as a way for medical staff to evaluate the mental health of arrestees on site, instead of sending them to a hospital.
They’re also suggesting increasing the number of providers who can complete commitment evaluations, recruiting and retaining staff so more beds are available, and expanding outpatient services.
Other recommendations include improving data collection, ensuring there’s a payment method in place for outpatient commitment services, and evaluating the legal standards for involuntary commitment in regards to guardianship and incompetency, according to the report.
Rep. Marcia Morey (D-Durham) questioned whether there’s enough funding available to complete these tasks.
“We have 300 beds that aren’t being used because we aren’t able to staff them,” she said. “We’re not being able to pay the licensed professionals that we need to increase licensing requirements, to get more people able to be licensed.”
Others pointed out that while the mental health crisis has always existed, it’s required more attention lately.
This could lead to the state keeping more people in custody than in the past, Rep. Carla Cunningham (D-Mecklenburg) said.
“We have to figure out another way to look at those individuals that are not going to self-medicate,” she said. “They’re not going to self-medicate because they know how the system works, because they’re in and out of the system. They learn how to manipulate it.”
NC lawmakers weigh changes to involuntary commitment, guardianship under Iryna’s Law
Unlike standing committees, select committees are temporary. The involuntary commitment panel was established in late 2025, following passage of Iryna’s Law in September in response to the fatal stabbing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska in Charlotte. A man with a history of severe mental illness is charged with her death.
“The committee recommends authorizing this committee to continue its work and to reestablish it to continue work for the 2027-2028 biennium,” legislative analyst Jessica Boney said.
Rep. John Torbett (R-Gaston) asked if agencies like the Dept. of Health and Human Services can make corrections immediately based on the committee’s work.
“Can they go in and start implementing some of the things that we’re talking about?” Torbett asked.
Rep. Hugh Blackwell (R-Burke), the panel’s co-chair, said the panel has involved the department throughout the process of drafting recommendations. The agency has identified a number of things they can implement without legislative action, he said.
“I would hope and encourage them to do that and have a lot of those conversations,” Blackwell said. “If it needs legislative action, then we can work on that.”
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