Bill Text: NY A10621 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relates to the liability of residential health care facilities; repeals the emergency or disaster treatment protection act which protects health care facilities and health care professionals from liability that may result from treatment of individuals with COVID-19 under conditions resulting from circumstances associated with the public health emergency; and requires courts to afford free speech protection to non-violent protesters.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-06-10 - referred to health [A10621 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-A10621-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          10621

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                      June 10, 2020
                                       ___________

        Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Kim) -- read
          once and referred to the Committee on Health

        AN  ACT  to amend the public health law, in relation to the liability of
          residential health care facilities; to amend  the  judiciary  law,  in
          relation  to  requiring  courts to afford protection of free speech to
          non-violent protesters; and to  repeal  article  30-D  of  the  public
          health  law relating to the emergency or disaster treatment protection
          act

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Article 30-D of the public health law is REPEALED.
     2    §  2. Subdivisions 1 and 2 of section 2801-d of the public health law,
     3  subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 61 of the laws of 2009 and  subdivi-
     4  sion  2 as added by chapter 658 of the laws of 1975, are amended to read
     5  as follows:
     6    1. Any residential health care facility that deprives any  patient  of
     7  said  facility of any right or benefit, as hereinafter defined, shall be
     8  liable to said patient for injuries suffered as a result of said  depri-
     9  vation,  except  as hereinafter provided. For purposes of this section a
    10  "right or benefit" of a patient of a residential  health  care  facility
    11  shall  mean any right or benefit created or established for the well-be-
    12  ing of the patient by the terms of any contract, by any  state  statute,
    13  code,  rule  or  regulation  or by any applicable federal statute, code,
    14  rule or regulation, where noncompliance by said facility with such stat-
    15  ute, code, rule or regulation has not been expressly authorized  by  the
    16  appropriate governmental authority. [No person who pleads and proves, as
    17  an  affirmative defense, that the facility exercised all care reasonably
    18  necessary to prevent and limit the  deprivation  and  injury  for  which
    19  liability  is  asserted  shall  be  liable  under this section.] For the
    20  purposes of this section, "injury" shall include, but not be limited to,
    21  physical harm to a patient; emotional harm to  a  patient;  death  of  a
    22  patient; and financial loss to a patient.
    23    2. Upon a finding that a patient has been deprived of a right or bene-
    24  fit  and  that  said patient has been injured as a result of said depri-

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD16643-02-0
        A. 10621                            2

     1  vation, [and unless there is a finding that the facility  exercised  all
     2  care reasonably necessary to prevent and limit the deprivation and inju-
     3  ry  to the patient,] compensatory damages shall be assessed in an amount
     4  sufficient  to  compensate such patient for such injury, but in no event
     5  less than twenty-five percent of the daily per-patient rate  of  payment
     6  established for the residential health care facility under section twen-
     7  ty-eight  hundred seven of this article or, in the case of a residential
     8  health care facility not having such an established  rate,  the  average
     9  daily  total  charges  per  patient for said facility, for each day that
    10  such injury exists. In addition, where the deprivation of any such right
    11  or benefit is found to have been willful or in reckless disregard of the
    12  lawful rights of the patient, punitive damages may be assessed.
    13    § 3. The judiciary law is amended by adding a new section 39-c to read
    14  as follows:
    15    § 39-c. Free speech protections afforded to non-violent protesters.  A
    16  court of competent jurisdiction in  New  York  state  shall  afford  any
    17  defendant  in a criminal or civil action, immunity under the free speech
    18  provisions of the first amendment of the United States Constitution, and
    19  immunity under the free speech provisions of section  eight  of  article
    20  one of the New York state constitution, if such defendant, without caus-
    21  ing  any  harm  to  any  other person or property, commits, promotes the
    22  commission of, and/or facilitates the commission of  any  offense  under
    23  section  240.05  of  the  penal  law, riot in the second degree; section
    24  240.06 of the penal law, riot in the first degree; section 240.08 of the
    25  penal law, inciting to riot; section 240.10 of the penal  law,  unlawful
    26  assembly;  section  240.15  of  the penal law, criminal anarchy; section
    27  240.20 of the penal law, disorderly conduct; and/or  section  240.35  of
    28  the penal law, loitering.
    29    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.