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Read. Follow. Verify.West Virginia Bill HB 5370 Mandates 24-Hour Hospital Hold for Substance Addiction Evaluations
Last action · February 9, 2026: To House Health and Human ResourcesSponsors: Bill Bell and 1 other
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What This Bill Proposed
West Virginia House Bill 5370 enacts 'Caitlyn's Law,' requiring a mandatory 24-hour hospital or qualified facility hold for individuals suspected or known to have a substance addiction prior to a . The measure outlines criteria for involuntary custody, examination procedures, and evaluation timelines overseen by courts and s.
This measure changes the pre-hearing detention rules for individuals suspected of substance addiction, requiring a 24-hour hospital or qualified facility hold before a can take place.
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Individuals with substance use disorders
Subject to mandatory 24-hour hospital holds, medical evaluations, and potential involuntary hospitalization proceedings.
Hospitals and qualified medical facilities
Required to detain individuals for 24-hour substance addiction holds and provide necessary medical evaluations and treatment.
Mental hygiene commissioners and magistrates
Responsible for processing applications, reviewing examination results, and conducting probable cause and commitment hearings.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Caitlyn's Law change about involuntary custody?
Who is authorized to perform the required examination?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · in House committee.
Procedural history
4 actions- Feb 9, 2026HouseCommitteeTo House Health and Human Resources
- Feb 9, 2026HouseIntroducedIntroduced in House
- Feb 9, 2026HouseCommitteeTo Health and Human Resources then Judiciary
- Feb 9, 2026HouseIntroducedFiled for introduction
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.wvlegislature.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 75)
- Controversy60Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz40Current news / social attention level
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