Lockhart

Government Code section 854.8 provides immunity to public entities for injuries to inpatients of mental institutions. Government Code section 855 creates an exception to this liability for injuries “proximately caused by the failure of the public entity to provide adequate or sufficient equipment, personnel or facilities required by any statute or any regulation of the State Department of Health Services,[ ] Social Services, Developmental Services, or Mental Health prescribing minimum standards for equipment, personnel or facilities . . . .” In this case, we consider which statutes and regulations are sufficient to trigger liability under Government Code section 855. Specifically, we conclude that only statutes and regulations promulgated by the described departments are sufficient; county regulations, federal Medicare regulations, and the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) standards are insufficient bases for liability under Government Code section 855. Moreover, we conclude that only statutes and regulations which “prescrib[e] minimum standards” for equipment, personnel or facilities can create liability; regulations that simply…