Iowa Code § 125.2
This is the official text of Iowa Code § 125.2, part of Iowa’s Code — part of the compiled statutory law of Iowa, published by the state as "Code." Browse the sections below, each linked to its official government source.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
Definitions.
Official statutory text
For purposes of this chapter, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
(1) “Chemical substance” means alcohol, wine, spirits, and beer as defined in chapter 123 and controlled substances as defined in section 124.101.
(2) “Chief medical officer” means the medical director in charge of a public or private hospital, or the director’s physician-designee. This chapter does not negate the authority otherwise reposed by chapter 226 in the respective superintendents of the state mental health institutes to make decisions regarding the appropriateness of admissions or discharges of patients of those institutes, however, it is the intent of this chapter that a superintendent who is not a licensed physician shall be guided in these decisions by the chief medical officer of the institute.
(3) “Clerk” means the clerk of the district court.
(4) “Department” means the department of health and human services.
(5) “Director” means the director of health and human services.
(6) “Facility” means an institution, a detoxification center, or an installation providing care, maintenance and treatment for persons with a substance use disorder licensed by the department under section 125.13, hospitals licensed under chapter 135B, or the state mental health institutes designated by chapter 226.
(7) “Incapacitated by a chemical substance” means that a person, as a result of the use of a chemical substance, is unconscious or has the person’s judgment otherwise so impaired that the person is incapable of realizing and making a rational decision with respect to the need for treatment.
(8) “Interested person” means a person who, in the discretion of the court, is legitimately concerned that a respondent receive substance use disorder treatment services.
(9) “Magistrate” means the same as defined in section 801.4, subsection 10.
(10) “Mental health professional” means the same as defined in section 228.1.
(11) “Psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner” means an individual currently licensed as a registered nurse under chapter 152 or 152E who holds a national certification in psychiatric mental health care and who is licensed by the board of nursing as an advanced registered nurse practitioner.
(12) “Respondent” means a person against whom an application is filed under section 125.75.
(13) “Substance use disorder” means a diagnosable substance use disorder of sufficient duration to meet diagnostic criteria specified within the most current diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders published by the American psychiatric association that results in a functional impairment.
[C62, 66, §123A.1; C71, 73, §123A.1, 123B.1; C75, 77, §125.2; C79, 81, §125.2, 229.50; 81 Acts, ch 58, §1; 82 Acts, ch 1212, §1]86 Acts, ch 1245, §1122; 89 Acts, ch 197, §21; 90 Acts, ch 1085, §1, 2; 2005 Acts, ch 175, §59, 60; 2008 Acts, ch 1082, §1; 2011 Acts, ch 121, §25 – 28, 62; 2012 Acts, ch 1021, §40; 2015 Acts, ch 56, §1; 2017 Acts, ch 34, §1; 2018 Acts, ch 1137, §21, 22; 2022 Acts, ch 1071, §2; 2023 Acts, ch 19, §79; 2024 Acts, ch 1161, §18, 137
(1) “Chemical substance” means alcohol, wine, spirits, and beer as defined in chapter 123 and controlled substances as defined in section 124.101.
(2) “Chief medical officer” means the medical director in charge of a public or private hospital, or the director’s physician-designee. This chapter does not negate the authority otherwise reposed by chapter 226 in the respective superintendents of the state mental health institutes to make decisions regarding the appropriateness of admissions or discharges of patients of those institutes, however, it is the intent of this chapter that a superintendent who is not a licensed physician shall be guided in these decisions by the chief medical officer of the institute.
(3) “Clerk” means the clerk of the district court.
(4) “Department” means the department of health and human services.
(5) “Director” means the director of health and human services.
(6) “Facility” means an institution, a detoxification center, or an installation providing care, maintenance and treatment for persons with a substance use disorder licensed by the department under section 125.13, hospitals licensed under chapter 135B, or the state mental health institutes designated by chapter 226.
(7) “Incapacitated by a chemical substance” means that a person, as a result of the use of a chemical substance, is unconscious or has the person’s judgment otherwise so impaired that the person is incapable of realizing and making a rational decision with respect to the need for treatment.
(8) “Interested person” means a person who, in the discretion of the court, is legitimately concerned that a respondent receive substance use disorder treatment services.
(9) “Magistrate” means the same as defined in section 801.4, subsection 10.
(10) “Mental health professional” means the same as defined in section 228.1.
(11) “Psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner” means an individual currently licensed as a registered nurse under chapter 152 or 152E who holds a national certification in psychiatric mental health care and who is licensed by the board of nursing as an advanced registered nurse practitioner.
(12) “Respondent” means a person against whom an application is filed under section 125.75.
(13) “Substance use disorder” means a diagnosable substance use disorder of sufficient duration to meet diagnostic criteria specified within the most current diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders published by the American psychiatric association that results in a functional impairment.
[C62, 66, §123A.1; C71, 73, §123A.1, 123B.1; C75, 77, §125.2; C79, 81, §125.2, 229.50; 81 Acts, ch 58, §1; 82 Acts, ch 1212, §1]86 Acts, ch 1245, §1122; 89 Acts, ch 197, §21; 90 Acts, ch 1085, §1, 2; 2005 Acts, ch 175, §59, 60; 2008 Acts, ch 1082, §1; 2011 Acts, ch 121, §25 – 28, 62; 2012 Acts, ch 1021, §40; 2015 Acts, ch 56, §1; 2017 Acts, ch 34, §1; 2018 Acts, ch 1137, §21, 22; 2022 Acts, ch 1071, §2; 2023 Acts, ch 19, §79; 2024 Acts, ch 1161, §18, 137
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in Iowa?
Find a Iowa lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.