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Law changes to help families get loved ones into involuntary treatment

Washington state law changes this Sunday to help families dealing with substance use disorder get loved ones into involuntary treatment.

It's called Ricky's law.

It’s named after Ricky Garcia, who six years ago was close to death and had been in and out of Harborview Medical Center dozens of times for substance use disorder.

Lauren Davis, his best friend for a decade, worked tirelessly in Olympia to change Washington state law to align this state’s involuntary mental health statute with the substance use disorder statute.

Families will now have an option to get their loved one into involuntary treatment for substance use disorder.

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