Bill Text: NY A02278 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Directs the commissioner to promulgate regulations for the release of patient records by the office of mental health.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - referred to codes [A02278 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A02278-Introduced.html

---

                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          2278
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    January 22, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced by M. of A. GUNTHER, O'DONNELL, SANTABARBARA -- read once and
          referred to the Committee on Mental Health
        AN  ACT  to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to authorizing the
          release of certain records of  deceased  residents  of  mental  health
          facilities to family members upon written request
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Section 7.09 of the mental hygiene law is amended by adding
     2  a new subdivision (l) to read as follows:
     3    (l) Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 33.13 and 33.16 of this
     4  chapter, the commissioner shall  promulgate  regulations  in  accordance
     5  with  the federal health insurance portability and accountability act of
     6  1996, and any regulations promulgated thereunder, governing the  release
     7  of  certain records pertaining to a deceased individual who resided in a
     8  facility operated or certified by  the  office.  The  regulations  shall
     9  specify  which  information  shall  be  released  and shall include such
    10  records as the individual's name; dates of admission,  discharge,  birth
    11  and  death; cause of death; treatment and services provided; employment;
    12  and residential history. Such records may be provided to family  members
    13  upon  written  request. The commissioner shall not authorize the release
    14  of such records where the deceased individual had previously objected to
    15  the release of his or her records and such objection was in  writing  or
    16  otherwise  documented in the individual's services plan and had not been
    17  withdrawn. In the case of an individual who lacked capacity  to  consent
    18  to  the  release of his or her records, a qualified person as defined in
    19  paragraph six of subdivision (a) of section 33.16 of  this  chapter  may
    20  object to such release.
    21    §  2.  Subdivision  (c)  of section 33.13 of the mental hygiene law is
    22  amended by adding a new paragraph 18 to read as follows:
    23    18. upon written request by the physician of a  family  member  of  an
    24  individual,  who has a demonstrable medical need for such information as
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01625-01-9
        A. 2278                             2
     1  it is relevant to the family member's own health care. The  commissioner
     2  shall  promulgate  regulations  to  define family member for purposes of
     3  this section.
     4    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that section one
     5  of  this act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it
     6  shall have become a law.