One state in our country has a law on the books that allows people to petition the court in order to have someone committed to a drug and alcohol rehab.  In 1993, the state of Florida enacted the Marchman Act.  It provides for the involuntary assessment and stabilization of a person allegedly abusing substances and provides treatment for substance abuse.  The law protects people that are a threat to themselves or to others.

Addiction is a fatal disease.  The majority of people in our country that are afflicted with alcoholism and drug addiction never get treatment.  There are a variety of reasons as to why but the one we are concerned with in regards to the Marchman Act is when the person thinks they don’t need help.  Many people suffer from denial.  Denial is one of the ways to keep an addict out there longer.  When a family member or anyone in the addict’s life for that matter thinks someone has a problem and isn’t willing to do anything about it that is when family members can use the Marchman Act to their benefit.  Doing this has its advantages by keeping the person out of jail and even worse from losing their life.

We have recently spoken with an attorney in Florida who gave us some insight to how this law works.  Robert Gluck and attorney in south Florida specializes in Marchman Act cases.  Rob says, “You don’t have to wait for your loved one to be injured, perhaps die, or land in jail to get them the help they need.”  He also tells us that hiring an attorney will get you faster results than if you went to the court directly.  Like any law, the Marchman Act needs to be navigated correctly to work in its best capacity.  The attorney will speed the process up and also get the person to treatment faster.

Pennsylvania does not have this law on their books.  There are similar laws for mental illness but not specifically for drug and alcohol addiction.  When we researched whether or not it has been talked about in PA, we found a petition on Change.org that you can read HERE.  That was five years ago.  We have not found anything since then.  What do you think?  Is this a law that should be put into place in every state?  Maybe on the Federal level?

ARE YOU OR SOMEONE YOU CARE ABOUT STRUGGLING WITH DRUGS OR ALCOHOL?

CALL CLEARBROOK TREATMENT CENTERS NOW AT 570-536-9621

Should you need an attorney to speak with about the Marchman Act you can visit Robert Gluck’s website HERE.