Tex. Health & Safety Code Section 533.004
Liens


(a)

The department and each community center has a lien to secure reimbursement for the cost of providing support, maintenance, and treatment to a patient with mental illness in an amount equal to the amount of reimbursement sought.

(b)

The amount of the reimbursement sought may not exceed:

(1)

the amount the department is authorized to charge under Section 552.017 (Sliding Fee Schedule) if the patient received the services in a department facility; or

(2)

the amount the community center is authorized to charge under Section 534.017 (Fees for Services) if the patient received the services in a community center.

(c)

The lien attaches to:

(1)

all nonexempt real and personal property owned or later acquired by the patient or by a person legally responsible for the patient’s support;

(2)

a judgment of a court in this state or a decision of a public agency in a proceeding brought by or on behalf of the patient to recover damages for an injury for which the patient was admitted to a department facility or community center; and

(3)

the proceeds of a settlement of a cause of action or a claim by the patient for an injury for which the patient was admitted to a department facility or community center.

(d)

To secure the lien, the department or community center must file written notice of the lien with the county clerk of the county in which:

(1)

the patient, or the person legally responsible for the patient’s support, owns property; or

(2)

the patient received or is receiving services.

(e)

The notice must contain:

(1)

the name and address of the patient;

(2)

the name and address of the person legally responsible for the patient’s support, if applicable;

(3)

the period during which the department facility or community center provided services or a statement that services are currently being provided; and

(4)

the name and location of the department facility or community center.

(f)

Not later than the 31st day before the date on which the department files the notice of the lien with the county clerk, the department shall notify by certified mail the patient and the person legally responsible for the patient’s support. The notice must contain a copy of the charges, the statutory procedures relating to filing a lien, and the procedures to contest the charges. The executive commissioner by rule shall prescribe the procedures to contest the charges.

(g)

The county clerk shall record on the written notice the name of the patient, the name and address of the department facility or community center, and, if requested by the person filing the lien, the name of the person legally responsible for the patient’s support. The clerk shall index the notice record in the name of the patient and, if requested by the person filing the lien, in the name of the person legally responsible for the patient’s support.

(h)

The notice record must include an attachment that contains an account of the charges made by the department facility or community center and the amount due to the facility or center. The superintendent or director of the facility or center must swear to the validity of the account. The account is presumed to be correct, and in a suit to cancel the debt and discharge the lien or to foreclose on the lien, the account is sufficient evidence to authorize a court to render a judgment for the facility or center.

(i)

To discharge the lien, the superintendent or director of the department facility or community center or a claims representative of the facility or center must execute and file with the county clerk of the county in which the lien notice is filed a certificate stating that the debt covered by the lien has been paid, settled, or released and authorizing the clerk to discharge the lien. The county clerk shall record a memorandum of the certificate and the date on which it is filed. The filing of the certificate and recording of the memorandum discharge the lien.
Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 76, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1991.
Amended by:
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 1 (S.B. 219), Sec. 3.1335, eff. April 2, 2015.

Source: Section 533.004 — Liens, https://statutes.­capitol.­texas.­gov/Docs/HS/htm/HS.­533.­htm#533.­004 (accessed Jun. 5, 2024).

533.001
Gifts and Grants
533.0001
Definitions
533.0002
Commissioner’s Powers and Duties
533.003
Use of Funds for Volunteer Programs in Local Authorities and Community Centers
533.004
Liens
533.005
Easements
533.007
Use of Criminal History Record Information
533.008
Employment Opportunities for Individuals with Mental Illness or an Intellectual Disability
533.009
Exchange of Patient Records
533.010
Information Relating to Condition
533.012
Cooperation of State Agencies
533.014
Responsibility of Local Mental Health Authorities in Making Treatment Recommendations
533.015
Unannounced Inspections
533.016
Certain Procurements of Goods and Services by Service Providers
533.017
Participation in Purchasing Contracts or Group Purchasing Program
533.031
Definitions
533.032
Long-range Planning
533.033
Determination of Required Range of Mental Health Services
533.034
Authority to Contract for Community-based Services
533.035
Local Mental Health Authorities
533.037
Service Programs and Sheltered Workshops
533.040
Services for Children and Youth
533.042
Evaluation of Elderly Residents
533.043
Proposals for Geriatric, Extended, and Transitional Care
533.051
Allocation of Outpatient Mental Health Services and Beds in State Hospitals
533.052
Contracting with Certain Mental Health Service Providers and Facilities to Provide Services and Beds for Certain Persons
533.053
Informing Courts of Commitment Options
533.0075
Exchange of Employment Records
533.081
Development of Facility Budgets
533.082
Determination of Savings in Facilities
533.083
Criteria for Expansion, Closure, or Consolidation of Facility
533.084
Management of Surplus Real Property
533.085
Facilities for Inmate and Parolee Care
533.087
Lease of Real Property
533.0095
Collection and Maintenance of Information Regarding Persons Found Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity
533.108
Prioritization of Funding for Diversion of Persons from Incarceration in Certain Counties
533.0325
Continuum of Services in Campus Facilities
533.0345
State Agency Services Standards
533.0351
Required Composition of Local Mental Health Authority Governing Body
533.0352
Local Authority Planning for Local Service Area
533.0354
Disease Management Practices and Jail Diversion Measures of Local Mental Health Authorities
533.0356
Local Behavioral Health Authorities
533.0357
Best Practices Clearinghouse for Local Mental Health Authorities
533.0358
Local Mental Health Authority’s Provision of Services as Provider of Last Resort
533.0359
Rulemaking for Local Mental Health Authorities
533.0415
Memorandum of Understanding on Interagency Training
533.0515
Regional Allocation of Mental Health Beds
533.0844
Mental Health Community Services Account
533.03521
Local Network Development Plan Creation and Approval

Accessed:
Jun. 5, 2024

§ 533.004’s source at texas​.gov