Key indicators of gravely disabled status include?

• A. Having a legal guardian.
• B. Refusal to take medication only.
• C. Inability to meet basic needs such as food, clothing, shelter, or safety due to mental illness.
• D. Talking to oneself in public.

Answer: (C)

Gravely disabled means the person cannot provide for their own basic personal needs for health and safety because of a mental illness or impairment. This centers on needing food, clothing, shelter, or protection from harm and being unable to meet those needs without assistance. That’s why the indicator describing an inability to meet basic needs like food, clothing, shelter, or safety due to mental illness is the best fit.

Having a legal guardian can exist for many reasons and doesn’t by itself prove someone is unable to meet basic needs. Refusal to take medication alone isn’t the same as being unable to care for oneself; it can reflect treatment preferences or nonadherence rather than a systemic incapacity. Talking to oneself in public may show a symptom of mental illness but doesn’t necessarily demonstrate an inability to provide for basic needs.