(a) Subject to the provisions of section 527.12 of this Part, residents of facilities operated or licensed by the Office of Mental Health have a right to receive visitors at reasonable times, to have privacy when visited, to authorize those family members and other adults who will be given priority to visit, and to communicate freely with persons within or outside the facility.

1. (1) Recognizing that, in general, having visitors and visiting outside of the facility is part of the recovery process which maintains ties with family and the rest of the community, all facilities shall establish visiting hours and policies which are designed to facilitate the exercise of the right to receive visitors. Such policies:

   1. (i) must not be unduly onerous to residents;
   2. (ii) must be as flexible as administratively feasible;
   3. (iii) shall not require prior notification or request by either the resident or the visitor, except when such visits would interfere with the regularly scheduled therapeutic activities in which patients are engaged, or as provided in section 527.12 of this Part;
   4. (iv) should, in order to preserve the therapeutic environment of the facility, be tailored in a manner that facilitates visiting while avoiding interference with the regularly scheduled activities in which residents are engaged, such as school attendance, program participation, and mealtime, by ensuring that in individual cases where an accommodation can be made without compromising the clinical care of the resident or other residents, facilities shall make reasonable efforts to do so;
   5. (v) shall require the establishment of regular visiting hours during every day and every evening of the week, provided, however, that facilities operated by the office shall establish regular visiting hours based on the facility's security needs and the needs of the specific population served (i.e., adults, children, or persons residing in forensic or secure treatment facilities), their families, and the community, as well as all other requirements of this subdivision; and
   6. (vi) with respect to facilities which serve minors 18 years of age or under, may require prior authorization of visitors by the person or entity with legal authority to consent to treatment for such minor, if in the best clinical interests of the resident.
2. (2) Each facility shall establish a space where visitors may meet with residents in comfortable surroundings with a reasonable degree of privacy. Visitors should be encouraged to visit in the living, dining, and recreational areas with patients, as well as to visit outside the facility with the resident.
3. (3) In exceptional instances, it may be necessary to restrict a resident's visiting right. Such restriction can only be imposed in accordance with section 527.12 of this Part.

(b) Visiting rights at facilities.