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A00372 Summary:

BILL NOA00372A
 
SAME ASSAME AS S01783-A
 
SPONSORBronson
 
COSPNSRSeawright, Dinowitz, Glick, Simone, Septimo, Kim, Epstein, Burdick, Simon, Sillitti, Clark, Forrest
 
MLTSPNSR
 
Add 2803-c-2, Pub Health L
 
Establishes the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, and people living with HIV long-term care facility residents' bill of rights; prohibits a long-term care facility or facility staff from discriminating against any resident on the basis of such resident's actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or HIV status.
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A00372 Actions:

BILL NOA00372A
 
01/06/2023referred to aging
05/19/2023amend (t) and recommit to aging
05/19/2023print number 372a
05/23/2023reported referred to codes
06/08/2023reported referred to rules
06/08/2023reported
06/08/2023rules report cal.670
06/08/2023substituted by s1783a
 S01783 AMEND=A HOYLMAN-SIGAL
 01/13/2023REFERRED TO HEALTH
 01/31/20231ST REPORT CAL.247
 02/01/20232ND REPORT CAL.
 02/06/2023ADVANCED TO THIRD READING
 05/30/2023AMENDED ON THIRD READING (T) 1783A
 06/06/2023PASSED SENATE
 06/06/2023DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY
 06/06/2023referred to codes
 06/08/2023substituted for a372a
 06/08/2023ordered to third reading rules cal.670
 06/09/2023passed assembly
 06/09/2023returned to senate
 11/29/2023DELIVERED TO GOVERNOR
 11/30/2023SIGNED CHAP.682
 01/13/2023REFERRED TO HEALTH
 01/31/20231ST REPORT CAL.247
 02/01/20232ND REPORT CAL.
 02/06/2023ADVANCED TO THIRD READING
 05/30/2023AMENDED ON THIRD READING (T) 1783A
 06/06/2023PASSED SENATE
 06/06/2023DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY
 06/06/2023referred to codes
 06/08/2023substituted for a372a
 06/08/2023ordered to third reading rules cal.670
 06/09/2023passed assembly
 06/09/2023returned to senate
 11/29/2023DELIVERED TO GOVERNOR
 11/30/2023SIGNED CHAP.682
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A00372 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A372A REVISED 5/22/23
 
SPONSOR: Bronson
  TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the public health law, in relation to establishing the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, and people living with HIV long- term care facility residents' bill of rights   SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS: Section 1 of the bill establishes a new section 2803-c-2 of the Public Health Law which enacts the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and People Living with HIV Long Term Care Bill of Rights, which provides it is unlawful for a long-term care facility or facility staff member to discriminate against any resident on the basis of such resident's actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) status. These unlawful actions include: -denying admission to a long-term care facility, transferring or refus- ing to transfer a resident within a facility or to another facility, or discharging or evicting a resident from a facility; -denying a request by residents to share a room; -where rooms are assigned by gender, assigning, reassigning, or refusing to assign 'a room to a transgender resident other than in accordance with the transgender resident's gender identity, unless at the transgen- der resident's request; -prohibiting a resident from using a restroom available to other persons of the same gender identity, or harassing a resident who seeks to use or does use such a restroom; -willfully and repeatedly failing to use a resident's preferred name or pronouns after being clearly informed of the preferred name or pronouns; -denying a resident the right to wear or be dressed in clothing, acces- sories, or cosmetics that are permitted for any other resident; restricting a resident's right to associate with other residents or with visitors, including the right to consensual sexual relations, unless the restriction is uniformly applied to all residents in a nondiscriminatory manner; denying or restricting medical or nonmedical dare that is appro- priate to a resident's organ and bodily needs. The provisions of this section do not apply where they are incompatible with any professionally reasonable clinical judgment. Further, the bill requires: -facilities to post notices about their nondiscrimination policies with information about reporting violations to the Office of the New York State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program; -facilities to employ procedures for recordkeeping purposes that include residents' gender identity, correct name as indicated by the resident, and preferred prdhoun as indicated by the resident; -requires facilities to protect personally identifiable information regarding residents' sexual orientation; whether a resident is transgen- der, a resident's transition history, and HIV status from unauthorized disclosure in accordance with applicable federal and state laws, and to take reasonably necessary steps to prevent the inadvertent or incidental disclosure of that information to other residents, visitors, or facility staff; -ensure that facility staff that are not involved in providing direct care to residents shall not be present during physical examinations or the provision of personal care without the express permission of the resident or the resident's legally authorized representative; and -ensure that at least once every two years, each facility staff member who works directly with residents receives training on . cultural competency focusing on patients who identify as LGBT and/or HIV Section 2 of the bill is the effective date.   JUSTIFICATION: In 2011, a study and report entitled "LGBT Older Adults in Long-Term Care Facilities: Stories from the Field" was co-authored by the National Senior Citizens Law center, the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force, Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE), Lambda Legal, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, and the National Center for Transgender Equality. The report sought to "better understand the experiences of LGBT older adults in long- term care settings," and surveyed hundreds of LGBT seniors, family members, friends, social service providers, legal service providers and others. The findings of the report showed that 78% of LGBT seniors felt that they could not be open with the staff of a long-term care facility about their sexual orientation or gender identity, and a majority of all respondents identified discrimination by staff (.89%), discrimination by other residents (81%), isolation from other residents (77%), and abuse or neglect by staff (53%) as issues that LGBT seniors face in long-term care facilities. The LGBT Long-Term Care Facility Residents' Bill of Rights would help address the common is sues faced by many LGBT seniors in long-term care facilities. Modeled after a recently-adopted California law, this bill would build on the existing protections against discrimination found in New York's Human Rights Law by prohibiting specific actions and inactions by long term care facilities and their staffs. Examples include denying admis- sion to a long-term care facility, transferring or denying a transfer within a facility or to another facility, or discharging or evicting a resident from a facility wholly or partially based on a resident's actu- al or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity or express, or HIV status. The bill of rights also establishes recordkeeping procedures for resi- dents' specified gender identity, name, and pronoun; requires the protection of residents' personally identifiable information and bodily privacy; and protects residents' rights to wear or dress in clothing permitted for other residents, be referred to by a preferred name and pronoun, and use restrooms available to other persons of the same gender identity.   LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: A.866-C of 2019-2020 (Simotas): Committed to Aging A.7807 of 2021-22: referred to Aging   FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None.   EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date.
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A00372 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                         372--A
 
                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                     January 6, 2023
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  BRONSON, SEAWRIGHT, DINOWITZ, GLICK, SIMONE,
          SEPTIMO, KIM, EPSTEIN, BURDICK, SIMON -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Aging --  committee  discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
 
        AN  ACT  to amend the public health law, in relation to establishing the
          lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, and  people  living  with  HIV
          long-term care facility residents' bill of rights
 
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section 1. The public health law is amended by adding  a  new  section
     2  2803-c-2 to read as follows:
     3    §  2803-c-2. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, and people living
     4  with HIV long-term care facility residents' bill  of  rights.  1.  Defi-
     5  nitions. For the purposes of this section:
     6    (a)  "Gender  identity  or  expression" shall have the same meaning as
     7  defined by section two hundred ninety-two of the executive law.
     8    (b) "Long-term care facilities" or "facilities" shall mean residential
     9  health care facilities as defined in subdivision three of section  twen-
    10  ty-eight  hundred  one of this article, adult care facilities as defined
    11  in subdivision twenty-one of section two of the social services law, and
    12  assisted living residences, as defined in article  forty-six-B  of  this
    13  chapter,  or any facilities which hold themselves out or advertise them-
    14  selves as providing assisted living services and which are  required  to
    15  be licensed or certified under the social services law or this chapter.
    16    (c) "Long-term care facility staff" or "facility staff" shall mean all
    17  individuals employed by or contracted directly with the facility.
    18    (d)  "Resident"  shall  mean a resident or patient of a long-term care
    19  facility.
    20    2. (a) Except as provided in subdivision three  of  this  section,  it
    21  shall  be  unlawful  for  a long-term care facility or facility staff to
    22  discriminate against any resident on the basis of such resident's actual
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01718-08-3

        A. 372--A                           2
 
     1  or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or human
     2  immunodeficiency virus (HIV) status:
     3    (i) deny admission to a long-term care facility, transfer or refuse to
     4  transfer  a  resident  within  a  facility  or  to  another facility, or
     5  discharge or evict a resident from a facility;
     6    (ii) deny a request by residents to share a room;
     7    (iii) where rooms are assigned by gender,  assigning,  reassigning  or
     8  refusing  to  assign  a  room  to  a  transgender resident other than in
     9  accordance with the transgender resident's gender  identity,  unless  at
    10  the transgender resident's request;
    11    (iv) prohibit a resident from using, or harass a resident who seeks to
    12  use  or  does  use,  a  restroom  available to other persons of the same
    13  gender identity, regardless of whether the  resident  has  taken  or  is
    14  taking  hormones,  has  had  transition-related  surgery, or is making a
    15  gender transition or appears to  be  gender-nonconforming.    Harassment
    16  includes,  but  is not limited to, requiring a resident to show identity
    17  documents in order to gain entrance to a  restroom  available  to  other
    18  persons of the same gender identity;
    19    (v)  willfully  and repeatedly fail to use a resident's preferred name
    20  or pronouns after being  clearly  informed  of  the  preferred  name  or
    21  pronouns, even if the resident is not present;
    22    (vi)  deny  a  resident  the  right to wear or be dressed in clothing,
    23  accessories, or cosmetics that are permitted for any other resident;
    24    (vii) restrict a resident's right to associate with other residents or
    25  with visitors, including the right to consensual expression of  intimacy
    26  or  sexual relations, unless the restriction is uniformly applied to all
    27  residents in a nondiscriminatory manner; and
    28    (viii) deny or restrict a resident from accessing appropriate  medical
    29  or  nonmedical  care, or provide medical or nonmedical care, that unrea-
    30  sonably demeans the resident's dignity or causes avoidable discomfort.
    31    (b) The provisions of this subdivision shall not apply to  the  extent
    32  that  they  are incompatible with any professionally reasonable clinical
    33  judgment that is based on articulable facts of clinical significance.
    34    3. Each facility shall post the following notice alongside its current
    35  nondiscrimination policy in all places and on all materials  where  that
    36  policy  is  posted:   "(NAME OF FACILITY) DOES NOT DISCRIMINATE AND DOES
    37  NOT PERMIT DISCRIMINATION, INCLUDING,  BUT  NOT  LIMITED  TO,  BULLYING,
    38  ABUSE,  HARASSMENT,  OR DIFFERENTIAL TREATMENT ON THE BASIS OF ACTUAL OR
    39  PERCEIVED SEXUAL ORIENTATION, GENDER  IDENTITY  OR  EXPRESSION,  OR  HIV
    40  STATUS,  OR  BASED  ON ASSOCIATION WITH ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL ON ACCOUNT OF
    41  THAT INDIVIDUAL'S ACTUAL OR PERCEIVED SEXUAL ORIENTATION, GENDER IDENTI-
    42  TY OR EXPRESSION, OR HIV STATUS. YOU  MAY  FILE  A  COMPLAINT  WITH  THE
    43  OFFICE  OF  THE NEW YORK STATE LONG-TERM CARE OMBUDSMAN PROGRAM (PROVIDE
    44  CONTACT INFORMATION) IF YOU BELIEVE THAT YOU HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS  KIND
    45  OF DISCRIMINATION."
    46    4.  (a)  A facility shall employ procedures for recordkeeping, includ-
    47  ing, but not limited to, records generated at  the  time  of  admission,
    48  that  include  the  gender  identity,  correct name, as indicated by the
    49  resident, and pronoun of each resident, as indicated by the resident and
    50  such records shall be kept up to date.
    51    (b) The state long-term care ombudsman program shall  establish  poli-
    52  cies  and  procedures  for  recording complaints filed from residents of
    53  long-term care facilities pursuant to this section.
    54    5. Long-term care facilities  shall  protect  personally  identifiable
    55  information  regarding residents' sexual orientation, whether a resident
    56  is transgender, a resident's transition history,  and  HIV  status  from

        A. 372--A                           3
 
     1  unauthorized  disclosure,  as  required  by the federal Health Insurance
     2  Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, if applicable, and any other
     3  applicable provision of federal or state law. A facility shall take  any
     4  steps  reasonably necessary to minimize the likelihood of inadvertent or
     5  incidental disclosure of that information to other residents,  visitors,
     6  or  facility  staff, except to the minimum extent necessary for facility
     7  staff to perform their duties.
     8    6. Long-term care facility staff not directly  involved  in  providing
     9  direct  care to a resident, including, but not limited to, a transgender
    10  or gender-nonconforming resident, shall not be present  during  physical
    11  examination  or  the provision of personal care to such resident if such
    12  resident is partially or fully unclothed without the express  permission
    13  of  such  resident, or such resident's legally authorized representative
    14  or responsible party. A facility shall use doors, curtains, screens,  or
    15  other  effective visual barriers to provide bodily privacy for all resi-
    16  dents, including, but not limited to, transgender or  gender-nonconform-
    17  ing  residents, whenever they are partially or fully unclothed. In addi-
    18  tion, all residents,  including,  but  not  limited  to,  lesbian,  gay,
    19  bisexual,   transgender  or  gender-nonconforming  residents,  shall  be
    20  informed of and have the right to refuse to be  examined,  observed,  or
    21  treated by any facility staff when the primary purpose is educational or
    22  informational  rather  than  therapeutic,  or  for resident appraisal or
    23  reappraisal, and that refusal shall not diminish the  resident's  access
    24  to care for the primary purpose of diagnosis or treatment.
    25    7.  (a) At least once every two years, a long-term care facility shall
    26  ensure that every facility staff member who works  directly  with  resi-
    27  dents receives training on cultural competency focusing on residents who
    28  identify  as  lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender and residents living
    29  with HIV.   Such training shall be developed  by  the  commissioner,  in
    30  consultation  with the director of the office for the aging and entities
    31  with expertise in the legal and social challenges faced by lesbian, gay,
    32  bisexual or transgender older adults and people living with HIV as  they
    33  age  and reside in long-term care facilities, and shall include, but not
    34  be limited to, providing facility staff with the  knowledge  and  skills
    35  necessary  to  provide  effective care, in compliance with this section,
    36  for residents who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender  and
    37  residents living with HIV.
    38    (b) Facility staff required to receive training under this subdivision
    39  shall  receive  the training within six months of hire unless the person
    40  provides proof of having received comparable training within  the  prior
    41  two  years  that the facility determines complies with this subdivision.
    42  If the facility accepts the person's proof of prior training,  a  record
    43  of the content of the prior training sufficient to determine its compli-
    44  ance with this subdivision shall be kept on site at the facility.
    45    8.  Nothing  in  this  section  should be construed to impede existing
    46  programs, benefits, or protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual or  trans-
    47  gender  residents or residents living with HIV at long-term care facili-
    48  ties.
    49    § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
    50  it shall have become a law.  Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
    51  ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
    52  tation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made on or
    53  before such date.
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