Establishes a health care proxy registry within the department of health to maintain the health care proxies of persons electing to submit proxies to such registry and to provide access thereto by attending health care providers and the principal of the health care proxy.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A6089
SPONSOR: Englebright (MS) TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the public health law, in relation to
establishing within the department of health a health care proxy regis-
try
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To establish a central location for maintaining and providing to attend-
ing physicians and health care providers voluntarily submitted health
care proxies within the Department of Health.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 adds a new definition to section 2980 of the Public Health Law
to define "health care proxy registry" or "registry" for purposes of
Article 29-C of the Public Health Law.
Section 2 amends section 2984 of the Public Health Law to establish an
obligation for certain individuals and entities to access the health
care proxy registry.
Section 3 establishes the Health Care Proxy Registry within the Depart-
ment of Health.
Section 4 authorizes the Department of Health to promulgate regulations
necessary to implement the provisions of this act.
Section 5 is the effective date.
EXISTING LAW:
Article 29-C of the Public Health Law establishes statutory authority
for health care proxies, but does not establish a central location for
accessing health care proxies duly perfected pursuant to the terms of
Article 29-C.
JUSTIFICATION:
Recent events related to end of life decisions have raised the
consciousness of New Yorkers regarding such matters. The need for indi-
viduals to make their wishes concerning their health care known under
circumstances where such individual is incapable of making their own end
of life decisions is paramount to avoiding unnecessary litigation and
family strife. Therefore, it is important for the state of New York to
establish a registry for health care proxies. The Department of Health
currently provides individuals with health care proxy forms and
instructions for duly perfecting such proxies. It makes sense to take
one further step to require the department to accept and maintain health
care proxies within the department, as well as to provide copies of such
proxies to attending physicians and health care providers.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2007-08 A5076 referred to health
2009-10 A3450 referred to health
2011-12 A4545 referred to health
2013-14 A5484 referred to health
2015-16 A6307-A referred to health
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it
shall have become a law; provided that any rules and regulations neces-
sary to implement the provisions of this act on its effective date are
authorized and directed to be completed on or before such effective
date.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6089
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 23, 2017
___________
Introduced by M. of A. ENGLEBRIGHT, SCHIMMINGER, RIVERA, SKOUFIS,
JAFFEE, DINOWITZ -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. CAHILL -- read once
and referred to the Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to establishing with-
in the department of health a health care proxy registry
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 2980 of the public health law is amended by adding
2 a new subdivision 16 to read as follows:
3 16. "Health care proxy registry" or "registry" means the health care
4 proxy registry established by section twenty-nine hundred eighty-six-a
5 of this article.
6 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 2984 of the public health law, as added
7 by chapter 752 of the laws of 1990, is amended to read as follows:
8 1. (a) A health care provider who is provided with a health care proxy
9 shall arrange for the proxy or a copy thereof to be inserted in the
10 principal's medical record if the health care proxy has not been
11 included in such record.
12 (b) Where the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subdivision have not
13 been met and the requirements of section twenty-nine hundred eighty-
14 three of this article have been satisfied, an attending physician or
15 health care provider shall contact the registry to determine whether the
16 individual has transmitted a health care proxy to the registry. In the
17 event such individual has transmitted his or her health care proxy to
18 the registry, such health care proxy or a copy thereof shall be inserted
19 in the principal's medical record.
20 § 3. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 2986-a
21 to read as follows:
22 § 2986-a. Health care proxy registry. 1. Definitions. For the purposes
23 of this section, "health care proxy" or "health care proxies" shall mean
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02958-01-7
A. 6089 2
1 a health care proxy or health care proxies properly executed pursuant to
2 this article.
3 2. Health care proxy registry; establishment. The department shall
4 establish a health care proxy registry, which shall maintain health care
5 proxies submitted to such registry pursuant to this section and provide
6 access to such registry by attending physicians, health care providers
7 and the principal of a health care proxy.
8 3. Transmission of health care proxy to the registry. An individual,
9 regardless of his or her residency, may transmit his or her health care
10 proxy to the department for placement in the registry. Such transmission
11 may be via first class mail or in any other manner prescribed by the
12 department in regulation.
13 4. Access to the registry. The department shall establish a straight-
14 forward, easily accessible mechanism to provide health care providers
15 and the principal of a health care proxy access to the registry. Such
16 access may be through a website-based system or a toll-free calling
17 system. Such registry shall comply with all state and federal laws and
18 regulations related to maintaining the privacy and confidentiality of
19 records contained within the registry.
20 5. Revocation or modification of a health care proxy. When an individ-
21 ual has revoked or modified his or her health care proxy, it shall be
22 such individual's responsibility to notify the registry of such revoca-
23 tion, or to transmit to the registry such modified registry.
24 6. Liability. Neither the department, nor the registry, shall be
25 civilly or criminally liable for providing, upon request, a health care
26 proxy to an attending health care provider, if such health care proxy
27 being provided pursuant to this section has been revoked or modified
28 pursuant to this article by the individual for whom the health care
29 proxy has been created and such individual has failed to transmit to the
30 registry pursuant to this section notification of such revocation or, as
31 the case may be, failed to transmit pursuant to this section such modi-
32 fied health care proxy.
33 § 4. The department of health shall promulgate regulations to imple-
34 ment the provisions of this act, which shall include, at a minimum,
35 provisions affording attending health care providers reasonable opportu-
36 nity to contact the health care proxy registry, at no cost to the health
37 care provider.
38 § 5. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
39 it shall have become a law; provided that, effective immediately, any
40 rules and regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this act
41 on its effective date are authorized and directed to be completed on or
42 before such effective date.
