Bill Text: NY A00096 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Designates human organ delivery vehicles as authorized emergency vehicles which shall permit the operator of such vehicles certain privileges when involved in an emergency operation.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 35-8)
Status: (Passed) 2021-10-25 - signed chap.496 [A00096 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-A00096-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 96--A 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY (Prefiled) January 6, 2021 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. GUNTHER, BENEDETTO, HYNDMAN, WALKER, GALEF, PAULIN, STECK, STIRPE, WOERNER, O'DONNELL, FAHY, JEAN-PIERRE, SOLAGES, COLTON, HEVESI, GOTTFRIED, SIMON, CARROLL, TAYLOR, SANTABARBARA, QUART, DiPIETRO, McDONOUGH, PALMESANO, RA, LEMONDES, LAWLER, DARLING, McMAHON, THIELE, L. ROSENTHAL, B. MILLER -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. BRAUNSTEIN, ENGLEBRIGHT, HUNTER, LUPARDO -- read once and referred to the Committee on Transportation -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to designating human organ delivery vehicles as authorized emergency vehicles The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 101 of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by 2 chapter 446 of the laws of 2003, is amended to read as follows: 3 § 101. Authorized emergency vehicle. Every ambulance, police vehicle 4 or bicycle, correction vehicle, fire vehicle, civil defense emergency 5 vehicle, emergency ambulance service vehicle, blood delivery vehicle, 6 human organ delivery vehicle, county emergency medical services vehicle, 7 environmental emergency response vehicle, sanitation patrol vehicle, 8 hazardous materials emergency vehicle and ordnance disposal vehicle of 9 the armed forces of the United States. 10 § 2. Section 114-b of the vehicle and traffic law, as amended by chap- 11 ter 460 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as follows: 12 § 114-b. Emergency operation. The operation, or parking, of an author- 13 ized emergency vehicle, when such vehicle is engaged in transporting a 14 sick or injured person, transporting prisoners, delivering blood or 15 blood products in a situation involving an imminent health risk, trans- 16 porting human organs and/or medical personnel for the purpose of organ 17 recovery or transplantation in a situation involving an imminent health EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02655-03-1A. 96--A 2 1 risk where undue delay would jeopardize such recovery or transplanta- 2 tion, pursuing an actual or suspected violator of the law, or responding 3 to, or working or assisting at the scene of an accident, disaster, 4 police call, alarm of fire, actual or potential release of hazardous 5 materials or other emergency. Emergency operation shall not include 6 returning from such service. 7 § 3. The vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding a new section 8 117-e to read as follows: 9 § 117-e. Human organ delivery vehicle. 1. Any vehicle which is owned 10 and operated by a certified organ procurement organization for the sole 11 purpose of transporting human organs and/or medical personnel for the 12 purpose of organ recovery or transplantation while engaged in an emer- 13 gency operation. For the purpose of this chapter, the term "organ 14 procurement organization" shall mean an organ procurement organization 15 as defined in subdivision five of section forty-three hundred sixty of 16 the public health law which is certified as a qualified organ procure- 17 ment organization by the federal centers for medicare and medicaid 18 services pursuant to section 273(b) of title 42 of the United States 19 code and section 486.303 of title 42 of the code of federal regulations. 20 2. No human organ delivery vehicle shall be operated as an authorized 21 emergency vehicle unless: (a) the certified organ procurement organiza- 22 tion which owns and operates such vehicle is in compliance with article 23 forty-three-B of the public health law and rules and regulations promul- 24 gated thereunder; (b) such vehicle is used solely for the purpose of 25 transporting human organs and/or medical personnel for the purpose of 26 organ recovery or transplantation while engaged in an emergency opera- 27 tion; (c) such vehicle is designated and clearly identified as a human 28 organ delivery vehicle, and, prior to its operation as a human organ 29 delivery vehicle the certified organ procurement organization which owns 30 and operates such vehicle has received written authorization from the 31 commissioner of health for the operation of such vehicle as a human 32 organ delivery vehicle; (d) such vehicle is operated in compliance with 33 this chapter and with regulations promulgated pursuant thereto including 34 subdivision three of this section; and (e) the driver of such vehicle 35 has undergone training for the operation of authorized emergency vehi- 36 cles during emergency operations as approved pursuant to subdivision 37 three of this section, and a defensive driving course. The commissioner 38 of health may revoke or suspend a written authorization issued pursuant 39 to paragraph (c) of this subdivision on proof that a certified organ 40 procurement organization has failed to comply with the provisions of 41 this section or any rules and regulations promulgated pursuant thereto. 42 Provided, however, that any such revocations or suspensions shall be 43 subject to the same requirements for revocations, suspensions, hearings, 44 notice and review as set forth in subdivision two of section forty-three 45 hundred sixty-six of the public health law. 46 3. The commissioner of health, in consultation with the commissioner, 47 shall promulgate regulations to establish standards for the operation of 48 human organ delivery vehicles as authorized emergency vehicles pursuant 49 to this chapter. Such regulations shall, at a minimum: (a) establish 50 standards for the issuance of written authorization for the operation of 51 such vehicles; (b) establish standards for human organ delivery vehicle 52 operations, vehicles and equipment including compliance with this chap- 53 ter, and the training of human organ delivery vehicle drivers for the 54 safe operation of such vehicles during an emergency operation; (c) 55 require certified organ procurement organizations to establish and 56 enforce written policies concerning minimum qualifications and physicalA. 96--A 3 1 requirements for human organ delivery vehicle drivers and for the equip- 2 ping and maintenance of such vehicles; and (d) include such other stand- 3 ards or requirements as the commissioner of health and the commissioner 4 deem necessary for the safety and well being of the people of the state. 5 § 4. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after 6 it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amend- 7 ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen- 8 tation of this act on its effective date are authorized and directed to 9 be made and completed on or before such effective date.
