Bill Text: NY A08592 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Directs the commissioner of health, in consultation with the state long-term care ombudsman, to establish policies and procedures for reporting, by staff and volunteers of the long-term care ombudsman program, issues concerning the health, safety and welfare of residents at long-term care facilities.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Passed) 2022-02-24 - signed chap.19 [A08592 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-A08592-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          8592

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 10, 2022
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. CLARK -- read once and referred to the Committee
          on Aging

        AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to  the  state  long-
          term  care  ombudsman program; and to amend part C of a chapter of the
          laws of 2021 amending the public  health  law  relating  to  including
          access  to state long-term care ombudsman program staff and volunteers
          within the pandemic emergency plan prepared by residential health care
          facilities, as proposed in legislative bills numbers S. 612-B  and  A.
          5436-B, in relation to the effectiveness thereof

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

     1    Section 1. Subdivision 13 of section 2803 of the public health law, as
     2  added by part B of a chapter of the laws of 2021,  amending  the  public
     3  health  law relating to requiring the commissioner of health, in consul-
     4  tation with the state long-term care ombudsman,  to  establish  policies
     5  and  procedures  for reporting, by staff and volunteers of the long-term
     6  care ombudsman program, issues concerning the health, safety and welfare
     7  of residents at residential  health  care  facilities,  as  proposed  in
     8  legislative  bills numbers S. 612-B and A. 5436-B, is amended to read as
     9  follows:
    10    13. (a) The commissioner, in consultation  with  the  state  long-term
    11  care  ombudsman,  shall  [promulgate rules and regulations establishing]
    12  establish policies and procedures for: (i) reporting to the  department,
    13  by  staff and volunteers of the long-term care ombudsman program, issues
    14  identified or witnessed by such staff  and  volunteers  that  relate  to
    15  actions,  inactions  or decisions that may adversely [effect] affect the
    16  health, safety and welfare  of  residents  at  residential  health  care
    17  facilities  licensed  or certified by the department in this state. Such
    18  policies and procedures shall include, but not be limited to, establish-
    19  ing a telephone hotline number and reporting form  on  the  department's
    20  website for use by long-term care ombudsman program staff and volunteers
    21  for the submission of reports;
    22    (ii)  timely and regular communications by the department to the state
    23  long-term care ombudsman [and long-term care ombudsman program staff and

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04808-08-2
        A. 8592                             2

     1  volunteers] regarding such issues reported by [such]  staff  and  volun-
     2  teers  pursuant to subparagraph (i) of this paragraph and the resolution
     3  of such issues; and
     4    (iii)  requiring the department to notify the local ombudsman [program
     5  staff and volunteers at the facility where such staff and volunteers are
     6  assigned of the time when] entity as defined in paragraph (c) of  subdi-
     7  vision  one  of  section two hundred eighteen of the elder law after the
     8  department  [will  conduct  inspections  of  such  facility,   including
     9  surveillance  of  such  facility,  and of any complaints received by the
    10  department concerning such facility] conducts a  recertification  survey
    11  of a facility.
    12    (b) Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to limit in any way
    13  a  resident's right to privacy and confidentiality pursuant to the regu-
    14  lations of the long-term care ombudsman program or the right  to  refuse
    15  to consent to the involvement of the long-term care ombudsman.
    16    § 2. Clause (C) of subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 12
    17  of  section 2803 of the public health law, as added by part C of a chap-
    18  ter of the laws of 2021, amending the  public  health  law  relating  to
    19  including  access  to  state  long-term care ombudsman program staff and
    20  volunteers within the pandemic emergency plan  prepared  by  residential
    21  health  care  facilities,  as  proposed  in legislative bills numbers S.
    22  612-B and A. 5436-B, is amended to read as follows:
    23    (C) that includes a method, consistent with  any  guidance  and  regu-
    24  lations  issued  by  the  commissioner,  to  provide  all residents with
    25  access, at no cost, to state long-term care ombudsman program staff  and
    26  volunteers,  and  that  provides  state long-term care ombudsman program
    27  staff and volunteers with access to the facility; and
    28    § 3. Section 2 of part C of a chapter of the laws  of  2021,  amending
    29  the  public  health  law relating to including access to state long-term
    30  care ombudsman program staff and volunteers within the pandemic emergen-
    31  cy plan prepared by residential health care facilities, as  proposed  in
    32  legislative  bills numbers S. 612-B and A. 5436-B, is amended to read as
    33  follows:
    34    § 2. This act shall take effect [immediately]  on  the  ninetieth  day
    35  after it shall have become a law.
    36    §  4.  This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
    37  section one of this act shall take effect on the same date  and  in  the
    38  same  manner  as  part  B  of a chapter of the laws of 2021, relating to
    39  requiring the commissioner of health, in  consultation  with  the  state
    40  long-term  care  ombudsman,  to  establish  policies  and procedures for
    41  reporting, by staff and  volunteers  of  the  long-term  care  ombudsman
    42  program,  issues  concerning the health, safety and welfare of residents
    43  at residential health care facilities, as proposed in legislative  bills
    44  numbers  S.  612-B  and  A. 5436-B, takes effect; and, provided further,
    45  that section two of this act shall take effect on the same date  and  in
    46  the  same manner as part C of a chapter of the laws of 2021, relating to
    47  including access to state long-term care  ombudsman  program  staff  and
    48  volunteers  within  the  pandemic emergency plan prepared by residential
    49  health care facilities, as proposed  in  legislative  bills  numbers  S.
    50  612-B and A. 5436-B, takes effect.