24 USC § 324 - Care and treatment of eligible persons until transfer and release

---
identifier: "/us/usc/t24/s324"
source: "usc"
legal_status: "official_prima_facie"
title: "24 USC § 324 - Care and treatment of eligible persons until transfer and release"
title_number: 24
title_name: "HOSPITALS AND ASYLUMS"
section_number: "324"
section_name: "Care and treatment of eligible persons until transfer and release"
chapter_number: 9
chapter_name: "HOSPITALIZATION OF MENTALLY ILL NATIONALS RETURNED FROM FOREIGN COUNTRIES"
positive_law: false
currency: "119-84"
last_updated: "2025-09-29"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
source_credit: "(Pub. L. 86–571, § 4, July 5, 1960, 74 Stat. 309; Pub. L. 98–621, § 10(r), Nov. 8, 1984, 98 Stat. 3381.)"
---


# § 324. Care and treatment of eligible persons until transfer and release

**(a)** **Place of hospitalization** section 323 of this titlesection 6101 of title 41section 322 of this title

Until the transfer and release of an eligible person pursuant to , the Secretary is authorized to provide care and treatment for such person at any Federal hospital within or (pursuant to agreement) outside of the Department, or (under contract or other arrangements made without regard to ) at any other public or private hospital in any State and, for such purposes, to transfer such person to any such hospital from a place of temporary care provided pursuant to . In determining the place of such hospitalization, the Secretary shall give due weight to the best interests of the patient.

**(b)** **Ineligible persons** The authority of the Secretary to provide hospitalization for any person under this section shall not apply to any person for whose medical care and treatment any agency of the United States is responsible.

---

**Source Credit**: (Pub. L. 86–571, § 4, July 5, 1960, 74 Stat. 309; Pub. L. 98–621, § 10(r), Nov. 8, 1984, 98 Stat. 3381.)

## Editorial Notes

### Codification

In subsec. (a), “” substituted for “section 3709 of the Revised Statutes, as amended” on authority of , , , which Act enacted Title 41, Public Contracts.

### Amendments

1984—Subsec. (a).  substituted “any” for “Saint Elizabeth Hospital, at any other” after “for such person” in first sentence.

## Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

### Effective Date of 1984 Amendment

Amendment by  effective , see  set out as an Effective Date note under .