Bill Text: NY A02944 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Directs the commissioner of mental health to establish a maternal mental health workgroup to study and issue recommendations related to maternal mental health and perinatal and postpartum mood and anxiety disorders; identifies underrepresented and vulnerable populations and risk factors in the state for maternal mental health disorders that may occur during pregnancy and through the first postpartum year.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 16-3)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to mental health [A02944 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A02944-Introduced.html

---

                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          2944

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    February 1, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  M.  of A. CLARK, GONZALEZ-ROJAS, KELLES, SIMON, JACKSON,
          GLICK, MITAYNES -- read once and referred to the Committee  on  Mental
          Health

        AN ACT directing the commissioner of mental health to establish a mater-
          nal mental health workgroup to study and issue recommendations related
          to maternal mental health and perinatal and postpartum mood and anxie-
          ty  disorders;  and  providing  for  the repeal of such provision upon
          expiration thereof

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

     1    Section  1. The commissioner of mental health shall establish a mater-
     2  nal mental health workgroup (referred to in this section as  the  "work-
     3  group")  within the office of mental health. The workgroup shall consist
     4  of, at the minimum, the commissioner of mental health  or  his,  her  or
     5  their  designee,  the  commissioner of the office of children and family
     6  services or his, her or their designee; the commissioner of the  depart-
     7  ment  of  health  or  his,  her  or their designee; representatives from
     8  statewide mental health  organizations;  representatives  from  maternal
     9  health  care  provider  organizations;  representatives from health care
    10  provider organizations; representatives from the health insurance indus-
    11  try; and any additional stakeholders that the commissioners deem  neces-
    12  sary.  At  least  one-third  of  the  members shall be from historically
    13  underrepresented communities that are disproportionately impacted by the
    14  underdiagnoses of maternal mental health disorders.
    15    § 2.  Workgroup  members  shall  receive  no  compensation  for  their
    16  services  as members of the workgroup, but shall be reimbursed for their
    17  actual expenses incurred in the performance of their duties on the  work
    18  group.    Reimbursement  shall  allow  for historically underrepresented
    19  communities to participate wholly in the performance of their duties  on
    20  the  workgroup by providing, if necessary, reimbursements for reasonable

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04707-01-3
        A. 2944                             2

     1  expenses incurred that may include, but not be  limited  to,  childcare,
     2  travel, meals and lodging.
     3    §  3.  It shall be the duty of the workgroup to study and issue recom-
     4  mendations related to maternal mental health and perinatal and  postpar-
     5  tum mood and anxiety disorders. The workgroup shall:
     6    a.  identify  underrepresented  and  vulnerable  populations  and risk
     7  factors in the state for maternal mental health disorders that may occur
     8  during pregnancy and through the first postpartum year;
     9    b. identify and recommend effective, culturally competent, and  acces-
    10  sible  prevention screening and identification and treatment strategies,
    11  including public education and workplace awareness,  provider  education
    12  and training, and social support services;
    13    c.  identify  successful postpartum mental health initiatives in other
    14  states and recommend programs, tools, strategies,  and  funding  sources
    15  that are needed to implement similar initiatives in the state;
    16    d.  identify  and  recommend  evidence-based practices for health care
    17  providers and public health systems;
    18    e. identify and recommend private and public funding models;
    19    f. make recommendations on legislation,  policy  initiatives,  funding
    20  requirements  and budgetary priorities to address maternal mental health
    21  needs in the state;
    22    g. any other relevant issues identified by the workgroup; and
    23    h. submit a final report containing all findings  and  recommendations
    24  to  the  governor, the temporary president of the senate, the speaker of
    25  the assembly, the commissioner of mental health, the commissioner of the
    26  office of children and family services, the commissioner of the  depart-
    27  ment of health, the minority leader of the senate and the minority lead-
    28  er of the assembly on or before December 31, 2023.
    29    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately and shall expire two years
    30  after such effective date when upon such date the provisions of this act
    31  shall be deemed repealed.