Bill Text: NY S06991 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Strengthens protections for patients regarding sexual misconduct by medical providers; requires medical expert consultants involved in investigations disclose conflicts of interest and to not be under investigation, on warning, or on probation; requires a zero tolerance policy to be adopted and training to be provided on sexual misconduct by the board for professional misconduct; includes provisions related to the right to have a chaperone; includes sexual misconduct in the definition of professional misconduct.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-05-17 - REPORTED AND COMMITTED TO RULES [S06991 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-S06991-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6991--A 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN SENATE May 21, 2021 ___________ Introduced by Sens. RIVERA, BIAGGI, BROUK, HOYLMAN, KRUEGER, MYRIE, SALAZAR, SEPULVEDA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health -- recommitted to the Committee on Health in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the public health law and the education law, in relation to strengthening protections for patients regarding sexual misconduct by medical providers The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 10 of 2 section 230 of the public health law, as amended by chapter 558 of the 3 laws of 1994, is amended to read as follows: 4 (ii) If the investigation of cases referred to an investigation 5 committee involves issues of clinical practice, medical experts, shall 6 be consulted. Experts may be made available by the state medical society 7 of the state of New York, by county medical societies and specialty 8 societies, and by New York state medical associations dedicated to the 9 advancement of non-conventional medical treatments. Medical experts 10 shall disclose any conflicts of interest including but not limited to 11 shared alma mater, hometown, residence, or relationships, that connects 12 or establishes a bond between such medical expert and the licensee in 13 order to preclude any favorable bias prior to assisting in an investi- 14 gation. A medical expert shall not be consulted if such medical expert 15 is under investigation, has an administrative warning, or is on 16 probation, and such medical expert shall be dismissed from consulting 17 duties if such medical expert becomes the subject of an investigation, 18 receives an administrative warning, or is put on probation during such 19 experts term of consultation. Any information obtained by medical 20 experts in consultations, including the names of licensees or patients, EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD10656-05-2S. 6991--A 2 1 shall be confidential and shall not be disclosed except as otherwise 2 authorized or required by law. 3 § 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 10 of section 230 of the public 4 health law, as amended by chapter 866 of the laws of 1980, is amended to 5 read as follows: 6 (a) Investigation. The board for professional medical conduct, by a 7 committee on professional conduct, may investigate on its own any 8 suspected professional misconduct, and shall investigate each complaint 9 received regardless of the source. The results of the investigation and 10 an objective summary statement produced by the investigator along with a 11 recommendation shall be referred to the director of the office of 12 professional medical conduct. If the director of the office of profes- 13 sional medical conduct, after consultation with a professional member of 14 the board for professional medical conduct, determines that a hearing is 15 warranted he shall direct counsel to prepare the charges within fifteen 16 days thereafter. If it is determined by the director that the complaint 17 involves a question of professional expertise then such director may 18 seek, and if so shall obtain, the concurrence of at least two members of 19 a panel of three members of the state board for professional medical 20 conduct. 21 § 3. Section 230 of the public health law is amended by adding a new 22 subdivision 6-a to read as follows: 23 6-a. (a) The board shall adopt a zero-tolerance policy for sexual 24 misconduct and the office of professional medical conduct shall publish 25 such policy and make it publicly available on its website. Such policy 26 shall include a statement that a patient cannot consent to any sexual 27 conduct or activity with such patient's treating physician. 28 (b) The board shall institute semi-annual training or in-service work- 29 shops on sexual misconduct and sexual harassment for the office of 30 professional medical conduct staff, including investigators, medical 31 experts, the division of legal affairs, and the board. The board shall 32 provide comprehensive orientation and training on sexual misconduct and 33 sexual harassment issues utilizing expert speakers, physicians, repre- 34 sentatives from the office of the attorney general, crisis intervention 35 centers, and related community programs. 36 § 4. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 2803-bb 37 to read as follows: 38 § 2803-bb. Protection of patients from sexual misconduct. 1. The prin- 39 ciples enunciated in subdivision three of this section are declared to 40 be the public policy of the state and a copy of such statement of rights 41 and responsibilities shall be posted conspicuously in a public place in 42 each hospital covered hereunder. 43 2. The commissioner shall require that every hospital, as defined in 44 subdivision one of section twenty-eight hundred one of this article, 45 shall adopt and make public a statement of the rights and responsibil- 46 ities regarding protection of the patients from sexual misconduct who 47 are receiving care in such hospitals, and shall treat such patients in 48 accordance with the provisions of such statement. 49 3. Said statement of rights and responsibilities regarding protection 50 from sexual misconduct shall include, but not be limited to the follow- 51 ing: 52 a. Every patient shall have the right to request the presence of a 53 family member or third-party chaperone during a physical examination. 54 b. Every patient shall have the right to receive a written statement 55 of the right to request the presence of a family member or third-partyS. 6991--A 3 1 chaperone during: (1) breast and pelvic examinations of females; and (2) 2 genitalia and rectal examinations of both males and females. 3 4. Each hospital shall give a copy of the statement to each patient at 4 or prior to the time of admission to the hospital, or to the appointed 5 personal representative at the time of appointment. Such statement shall 6 be provided in a document in addition to, and separate from, any other 7 statement of rights and responsibilities required pursuant to the 8 provisions of this chapter. Upon acknowledgment of the statement by the 9 patient, an acceptance or declination of the presence of a chaperone 10 shall be noted in such patient's chart. 11 § 5. Section 6530 of the education law is amended by adding a new 12 subdivision 51 to read as follows: 13 51. Sexual impropriety, including but not limited to behavior, 14 gestures, or expressions that are sexually suggestive, disrespectful of 15 patient privacy, or sexually demeaning to a patient, physical sexual 16 contact between a licensee and patient or engaging in any conduct with a 17 patient that is sexual or may be reasonably interpreted as sexual, or 18 any examination of the breasts or genitals without appropriate consent 19 from a patient or surrogate. 20 § 6. The education law is amended by adding a new section 6523-a to 21 read as follows: 22 § 6523-a. Additional duties of the state board for medicine. In addi- 23 tion to any other duties of the state board for medicine provided for in 24 law, such board shall query information from the United States depart- 25 ment of health and human services national practitioner data bank upon 26 an initial request for licensure by an applicant pursuant to section 27 sixty-five hundred twenty-four of this article. If such query returns 28 any instance of professional misconduct by the applicant, the board 29 shall consider both the severity of the misconduct alone and in relation 30 to the probability of such misconduct recurring upon licensure when 31 determining whether an application for licensure shall be denied or 32 whether to grant the applicant a hearing regarding such instance of 33 professional misconduct. 34 § 7. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall 35 have become a law provided, however, that the amendments to paragraph 36 (a) of subdivision 10 of section 230 of the public health law made by 37 section one of this act shall be subject to the expiration and reversion 38 of such paragraph pursuant to section 5 of chapter 426 of the laws of 39 1983, as amended, when upon such date the provisions of section two of 40 this act shall take effect. Effective immediately, the addition, amend- 41 ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the imple- 42 mentation of this act on its effective date are authorized and directed 43 to be made and completed on or before such effective date.
