HB1438 Enabling mental health caseworkers to report instances of animal abuse by their clients.
Enabling mental health caseworkers to report instances of animal abuse by their clients.
Impact Score — How Does This Bill Affect You?
Overall Impact Score
Concerning
Scale: 1 (harmful) to 10 (beneficial)
Your Wallet
No direct financial impact.
Your Community
Addresses the link between animal abuse and violence; enables intervention before escalation to harm against people.
Your Freedom
Creates an exception to mental health confidentiality, which could deter some people from seeking treatment.
Status
Refer to Interim Study, Motion Adopted, Voice Vote; 04/23/2026; Senate Journal 10
Sponsor
Ellen Read (D)
The Short Version
Allows mental health caseworkers to report animal abuse by clients, creating an exception to confidentiality rules. Animal abuse is a known indicator of violence toward humans, and this helps intervene early in escalating dangerous behavior.
Who's Behind This Bill?
Who Benefits
- ▲ Animals at risk of abuse
- ▲ Communities where animal abuse signals potential violence
- ▲ Mental health professionals wanting to report abuse
Who Pays the Price
- ▼ Clients who may avoid therapy if confidentiality exceptions expand
Bill statuses as of May 2026. Check LegiScan or NH General Court for the latest.
This bill was auto-scored using AI analysis of the bill text and legislative data. Scores may be refined as we review more bills.