Bill Text: NY A06847 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Requires a health care provider or facility which has determined to cease to do business or which is transferring its ownership, at least thirty days prior to such action to provide a copy of its plan for transfer of patient records to another provider, facility or practitioner.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-05-09 - print number 6847a [A06847 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-A06847-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                         6847--A
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                     March 22, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by M. of A. PERRY -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Health -- recommitted to the Committee on Health in accordance with
          Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
        AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to  the  transfer  of
          patient  medical  records upon the closure of a health care provider's
          office
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section  1.  Subdivision  1 of section 18 of the public health law, as
     2  added by chapter 497 of the laws of 1986, is amended  by  adding  a  new
     3  paragraph (j) to read as follows:
     4    (j)  "Cease  to do business in this state" shall mean any case where a
     5  health care provider who has engaged in an on-going practice or business
     6  within this state as a health care provider, ceases to  engage  in  such
     7  business,  provided  however,  that this term shall not include a health
     8  care practitioner whose practice is merged, consolidated,  combined,  or
     9  acquired  by  another  health  care  provider and he or she continues to
    10  provide services including  medical  care,  diagnosis  or  treatment  to
    11  patients  as  an  employee,  contractor, or owner of the merged, consol-
    12  idated, combined, or acquired health care provider.
    13    § 2. Section 18 of the public health law, as added by chapter  497  of
    14  the  laws  of 1986, is amended by adding a new subdivision 13 to read as
    15  follows:
    16    13. (a) A health care provider which has  in  its  possession  patient
    17  information  and/or  patient medical records and which has determined to
    18  permanently cease to do business or practice in  this  state  shall,  at
    19  least  thirty  days  prior  to  such action, make a good faith effort to
    20  notify each of the health care  provider's  current  patients  that  the
    21  office  will  be  closing  and to inform each such patient of his or her
    22  right to request that his or  her  patient  information  and/or  patient
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06423-04-8
        A. 6847--A                          2
     1  medical  records be sent to a health care provider, health care facility
     2  or health care practitioner of the patient's choosing or, alternatively,
     3  that such information and records be returned to the patient.
     4    (b)  The  provisions  of  this  section  shall  not  affect any rights
     5  afforded pursuant to section seventeen of this title.
     6    (c) Nothing in this section shall affect the period  of  time  that  a
     7  health  care provider is lawfully required to retain a patient's medical
     8  information and medical records.
     9    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.