Marchman Act Guidance for Families Facing Hospital Discharge

If your adult child is being discharged from the hospital after an overdose and says no to rehab, you can feel stuck. A hospital decides when a patient is ready to leave, but Florida also has a court route for adults who refuse treatment. That route is the Marchman Act. This page explains what happens when a hospital discharge refuses rehab in Florida, and how the court process works.

Where You Are Right Now: Discharge Day After an Overdose

You are likely waiting on a discharge date while your child still says they won’t go to treatment. That is a hard place to be.

Maybe the hospital called you. Maybe your child came in after an overdose, a relapse, or a night that scared everyone. Now the date to leave is close, and the answer is still no.

Your fears are real. You worry about another overdose. You worry about jail, about your child sleeping on the street, and about the feeling that nothing will work. Many parents carry those fears for years.

This page gives you the rules and the options in plain terms. It does not predict how any case will turn out. It explains what the law says and what the court steps involve.

What a Discharge Plan Is and Who Writes It

A discharge plan is the hospital’s written plan for where a patient goes after leaving. A discharge planner or case manager usually builds it with the medical team.

That person looks at whether the patient is ready to leave. They also look at follow-up care, housing, and referrals to other services.

Families can ask to take part in those talks. Ask the discharge planner what the plan says, where your child will go, and what happens if your child refuses. Write down the names, dates, and answers you hear.

A discharge plan is not a court order. It can list services, but it does not force your child into a treatment program.

Can a Florida Hospital Refuse Treatment?

A hospital’s choice to admit, keep, or release a patient turns on medical need, hospital policy, and the payer rules that apply. Those are the main factors.

Two questions get mixed up here. The first is whether a patient is medically stable enough to leave. That is a medical decision. The second is whether a patient who is not ready to leave can be placed in treatment against their will. That second question is where a court route may come into play.

Florida law also sets duties for licensed substance abuse service providers. A provider must make sure an involuntary admission meets the admission criteria. If it cannot safely manage a person, it must discharge that person and try to find a better setting.

Knowing which question you are facing helps you ask the right things.

What Happens When a Patient Refuses to Leave

A patient who stays after a formal discharge can face legal action from the hospital. That is one reality families need to know.

A March 2026 report from WCTV describes a Florida hospital that filed a complaint seeking a temporary injunction. The hospital asked a court to require a patient to leave. The patient had stayed for months after a formal discharge, and the hospital cited limited beds. See WCTV report on hospital lawsuit.

That report is one example. It is not a rule for every case.

A patient who won’t leave a hospital bed is one situation. A family asking a court to order treatment is a different one. Each has its own steps, timing, and rules. Keep them separate in your mind when you talk with the hospital or a lawyer.

Patient Rights During Discharge Planning

Patients keep basic rights during discharge. Those rights include dignity and access to a lawyer in court.

Florida law says the dignity of each person served must be respected at all times. That includes admission and transport.

Section 397.697 says that in all cases resulting in an order for involuntary treatment services, the court shall retain jurisdiction over the case and the parties for the entry of further orders as the circumstances may require, such as monitoring compliance with treatment.

Your child’s privacy is protected too.

Keep in mind the limits. A hospital notice or an appeal does not, by itself, secure a treatment bed or a court-ordered stay. Those are separate steps.

How the Marchman Act Works After a Hospital Stay

The Marchman Act is the part of Chapter 397 of the Florida Statutes that lets a court order assessment and treatment for substance use. A person may meet the criteria if there is a good faith reason to believe they have a substance use disorder. The person must also have lost the power of self-control with respect to substance use.

Here is the part many parents miss. The petitioner must prove by clear and convincing evidence that the respondent is substance abuse impaired and has a history of lack of compliance with treatment for substance abuse, and that, because of that impairment, the respondent is unlikely to voluntarily participate in recommended services or is unable to determine whether services are necessary, and either (1) without services the respondent is likely to neglect themselves or refuse care in a way that poses a real and present threat of substantial harm, with a substantial likelihood of serious bodily harm in the near future, or (2) the respondent’s refusal to voluntarily receive care is based on judgment so impaired by reason of substance abuse that the respondent is incapable of appreciating his or her need for care and of making a rational decision regarding that need for care. You need facts that show more than a “no.”

A parent may file as a relative of an adult child. The petition goes to the clerk in the county where the person is located. The clerk may not charge a filing fee.

Florida’s Baker Act is a separate statute that covers mental health. The Florida courts’ Baker Act bench guide explains those procedures.

What Evidence Matters in a Marchman Act Petition

The strongest petitions rest on specific facts. Those facts cover the person’s condition, the risk, and the treatment history.

The petition must give reasons for each belief the law requires. It must also explain the harm or the impaired judgment behind the refusal.

Useful records include overdose and emergency records, discharge papers, prior treatment attempts, and dates of safety concerns. See Fla. Stat. § 397.6957.

The court must find the conditions proved by clear and convincing evidence before ordering treatment. See Fla. Stat. § 397.697.

In J.C. v. State, the Fifth District reversed where the trial court questioned the only witness after the petitioner was absent. In C.W.R.K. v. Stewart Marchman Act Behavioral Healthcare, the court repeated that rule in 2024. A Fourth District court disagreed and certified a conflict, so this is Fifth District law, not statewide law.

Filing location matters too. However, the filing of the petition in the wrong county did not divest the circuit court in Putnam County of jurisdiction, according to J.P. v. J.N.. A petition filed in the wrong county did not, under J.P. v. J.N., strip the circuit court in Putnam County of its jurisdiction.

If Your Child Has No Stable Place to Go

A court order can require treatment, but it cannot create a home. Housing needs to be part of the plan from the start.

Many parents fear that a discharged child will end up homeless. That fear is fair and very common.

A renewal may be requested before that period ends. The court also keeps jurisdiction to monitor compliance and to act on violations of its orders. See Fla. Stat. § 397.697.

Unstable housing makes the process harder. A child who has left home or cannot be found is harder to reach. The clerk sends the summons to law enforcement for service, so the person must be located.

A discharge plan should name a safe place to go. If yours does not, ask the discharge planner what the hospital will do next.

Next Step: Talk Through Your Situation With Robinson Casey

A short conversation can help you sort out the petition options and the discharge date.

You are carrying this alone right now. You want a legal path to proper treatment, with people who understand addiction, so you are not managing every crisis by yourself.

Richard J. Casey III, Esq. is the lawyer responsible for this page.

The first consultation is free, confidential, and carries no obligation to continue. Call (561) 849-4149 or request a consultation to talk through your child’s discharge date and your options.