(a) The department shall set basic quality standards for services and supports to all persons served on the basis of mental illness, serious emotional disturbance, or developmental disabilities regardless of whether they are served by the department, the department’s contractors, private service providers, other state or local public agencies, agencies licensed by the department, or private service providers that are not licensed under this title and regardless of whether the service recipients are in the custody of state or local government.

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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 33-2-301

  • Department: means the department of mental health and substance abuse services. See Tennessee Code 33-1-101
  • Mental illness: means a psychiatric disorder, alcohol dependence, or drug dependence, but does not include intellectual disability or other developmental disabilities as defined in title 52. See Tennessee Code 33-1-101
  • Serious emotional disturbance: means a condition in a child who currently or at any time during the past year has had a diagnosable mental, behavioral, or emotional disorder of sufficient duration to meet psychiatric diagnostic criteria that results in functional impairment that substantially interferes with or limits the child's role or functioning in family, school, or community activities and includes any mental disorder, regardless of whether it is of biological etiology. See Tennessee Code 33-1-101
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(b) Basic quality standards shall be the same for all service recipients regardless of where they are served and by whom they are served. Basic quality standards may vary according to the ages of the service recipients to assure appropriate service for children, adults, and the elderly.