The new law on mental health stipulates that only people diagnosed with severe mental illnesses or who are considered a danger to themselves or others should be admitted to a relevant hospital or institution against their will.

The new regulation aims to protect the right of the mentally ill and prevent healthy people from being forcibly hospitalized.

In recent years, there have been many reports about healthy people forced into mental hospitals. Some were sent by family members over family disputes, some by employers over wage disputes, and some by police to stop their petitions.

However, the new rule triggered concerns among medial professionals. "If the patient didn't hurt himself and others, or the patient wouldn't sign the paper of voluntary admission, we can't treat them," said Tian Chenghua, a doctor at Peking University Sixth Hospital. He worries that many patients will lose their chance to be cured.

But legal professionals hailed the new law as it protects human rights.

"Human rights of those mentally ill must be respected as they're all human first, with the right to choose between treatment or leaving it alone," said Zhao Zhidong, a lawyer with the S&P Law Firm's Shanghai branch.

(China Daily 05/07/2013 page3)