S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                    909
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                                (PREFILED)
 
                              January 6, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  CARROLL, DICKENS, WEPRIN, J. RIVERA, COOK --
   Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. DAVILA -- read once and referred to the
   Committee on Health
 
 AN ACT to amend the public health law and the vehicle and  traffic  law,
   in  relation  to  requiring reporting of certain medical conditions to
   the department of health and the department of motor vehicles
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  The  public health law is amended by adding a new article
 20-B to read as follows:
                               ARTICLE 20-B
                      REPORTING OF IMPAIRING AILMENTS
 SECTION 2020. DEFINITIONS.
         2021. PHYSICIANS AND FACILITIES; DUTY TO REPORT.
         2022. CONTENTS OF REPORT.
         2023. REPORTING BY MOTORIST.
         2024. DUTIES OF COMMISSIONER.
   § 2020. DEFINITIONS. AS USED IN THIS ARTICLE:
   1. "FACILITY" SHALL MEAN ANY GOVERNMENTAL OR PRIVATE  AGENCY,  DEPART-
 MENT, INSTITUTION, CLINIC,  LABORATORY, HOSPITAL, NURSING CARE FACILITY,
 HEALTH  MAINTENANCE  ORGANIZATION,  ASSOCIATION  OR OTHER SIMILAR ENTITY
 THAT PROVIDES MEDICAL CARE.
   2. "IMPAIRING AILMENT" SHALL MEAN  ANY  OF  THE  FOLLOWING:  RECURRENT
 CONVULSIVE  SEIZURES, RECURRENT PERIOD OF UNCONSCIOUSNESS OR IMPAIRMENT,
 OR LOSS OR IMPAIRED OF MOTOR COORDINATION DUE TO CONDITIONS SUCH AS, BUT
 NOT LIMITED TO, EPILEPSY IN ANY OF ITS  FORMS  WHICH  PERSIST  OR  RECUR
 DESPITE MEDICAL TREATMENT.
   § 2021. PHYSICIANS AND FACILITIES; DUTY TO REPORT. AN ATTENDING PHYSI-
 CIAN  OR  A PERSON  REPRESENTING OR EMPLOYED BY A FACILITY AS DEFINED BY
 THE COMMISSIONER SHALL REPORT THE EXISTENCE OF AN IMPAIRING  AILMENT  TO
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
              

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD05356-01-1

 A. 909                              2
 
 THE  DEPARTMENT  AND THE DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES WITHIN TWENTY-FOUR
 HOURS OF DETERMINING THE EXISTENCE OF AN IMPAIRING AILMENT.
   §  2022.  CONTENTS  OF  REPORT. THE REPORT AS SET FORTH IN SECTION TWO
 THOUSAND TWENTY-ONE OF THIS  ARTICLE SHALL BE  DESIGNATED  AN  IMPAIRING
 AILMENT  REPORT  AND  SHALL  CONTAIN INFORMATION WHICH THE  COMMISSIONER
 ESTABLISHES AS NECESSARY TO IDENTIFY THE PATIENT SUFFERING THE IMPAIRING
 AILMENT AND INVESTIGATE, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,  THE  DIAGNOSIS,
 CURRENT  TREATMENT,  OCCURENCE,  FREQUENCY, INCIDENCE, CAUSE, EFFECT AND
 PROGNOSIS OF THE IMPAIRING AILMENT. THE REPORT SHALL ALSO INCLUDE IF THE
 PATIENT IS SUFFERING CHRONICALLY FROM THE IMPAIRING AILMENT SUCH THAT IT
 IS UNSAFE FOR SUCH PATIENT TO OPERATE A MOTOR VEHICLE.
   § 2023. REPORTING BY MOTORIST. WHEN THE COMMISSIONER  OR  THE  COMMIS-
 SIONER  OF MOTOR VEHICLES BECOMES AWARE, UPON INFORMATION RECEIVED OR AS
 A RESULT OF AN INVESTIGATION CONDUCTED, THAT A LICENSED DRIVER OR APPLI-
 CANT FOR A LEARNER'S PERMIT OR DRIVER'S LICENSE SUFFERS OR HAS  SUFFERED
 FROM  AN  IMPAIRING  AILMENT,  SUCH  COMMISSIONERS MAY REQUIRE FROM SUCH
 PERSON:
   1. A STATEMENT BY THE APPLICANT OR LICENSEE OF HIS OR HER  HISTORY  OF
 IMPAIRING AILMENTS; AND
   2.  ANY  OTHER INFORMATION WHICH SUCH COMMISSIONERS MAY DEEM NECESSARY
 TO EVALUATE THE APPLICANT'S OR LICENSEE'S  QUALIFICATION  TO  OPERATE  A
 MOTOR VEHICLE.
   §  2024.  DUTIES  OF  COMMISSIONER.  THE COMMISSIONER SHALL PROMULGATE
 RULES AND REGULATIONS TO  IMPLEMENT  THE  PROVISIONS  OF  THIS  ARTICLE,
 INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO:
   1. DEFINING A PERSON REPRESENTING OR EMPLOYED BY A FACILITY;
   2.  ESTABLISHING  THE FORM, CONTENT AND MANNER OF FILING THE IMPAIRING
 AILMENT REPORT;
   3. PRESCRIBING THE PERMISSIBLE USES FOR THE INFORMATION MADE AVAILABLE
 PURSUANT TO THIS ARTICLE;
   4. ESTABLISHING PROCEDURES TO MAINTAIN THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMA-
 TION PROVIDED TO PERSONS PURSUANT TO THIS ARTICLE; AND
   5. ESTABLISHING, IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE COMMISSIONER OF  MOTOR  VEHI-
 CLES,  A  METHOD  FOR AN ATTENDING PHYSICIAN OR A PERSON REPRESENTING OR
 EMPLOYED BY A FACILITY AS DEFINED BY THE COMMISSIONER TO REPORT  TO  THE
 DEPARTMENT  AND  THE  DEPARTMENT  OF  MOTOR VEHICLES THE EXISTENCE OF AN
 IMPAIRING AILMENT.
   § 2. Section 510 of the vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding a
 new subdivision 12 to read as follows:
   12. A. WHERE THE COMMISSIONER HAS RECEIVED AN IMPAIRING AILMENT REPORT
 PURSUANT TO ARTICLE TWENTY-B OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH  LAW,  IF  THE  REPORT
 SHOWS THAT THE IMPAIRING AILMENT IS A CHRONIC IMPAIRMENT TO DRIVING, THE
 COMMISSIONER  MAY  SUSPEND  THE LICENSE OF THE PERSON AFFLICTED WITH THE
 IMPAIRING AILMENT.
   B. ANY PERSON SIXTEEN YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER WHO  SUFFERS  OR  WHO  HAS
 SUFFERED  FROM  RECURRENT  CONVULSIVE  SEIZURES,  RECURRENT  PERIODS  OF
 IMPAIRED CONSCIOUSNESS, OR FROM IMPAIRMENT OR LOSS OF MOTOR COORDINATION
 DUE TO A CONDITION SUCH AS, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, EPILEPSY, IN ANY OF  ITS
 FORMS, SHALL, AS A PREREQUISITE TO THE ISSUANCE OF A LEARNER'S PERMIT OR
 DRIVER'S  LICENSE, RENEWAL OF A DRIVER'S LICENSE, RESTORATION OF A DRIV-
 ER'S LICENSE, OR RETENTION OF  A  DRIVER'S  LICENSE,  ESTABLISH  TO  THE
 SATISFACTION  OF  THE  COMMISSIONER  THAT  HE  OR SHE HAS BEEN FREE FROM
 RECURRENT CONVULSIVE SEIZURES, RECURRENT PERIODS OF IMPAIRED  CONSCIOUS-
 NESS,  OR  FROM IMPAIRMENT OR LOSS OF MOTOR COORDINATION FOR A PERIOD OF
 SIX MONTHS WITH OR WITHOUT MEDICATION AND THAT HE OR SHE  IS  PHYSICALLY
 QUALIFIED TO OPERATE A MOTOR VEHICLE.

 A. 909                              3
 
   C.  IF  A DRIVER'S LICENSE OR PERMIT IS DENIED, SUSPENDED, REVOKED, OR
 ALTERED UNDER THIS SUBDIVISION, THE PERSON HAS A RIGHT TO APPEAL A DECI-
 SION OF THE COMMISSION. IN ORDER TO APPEAL,  A  PERSON  MUST  REQUEST  A
 FORMAL  HEARING, IN WRITING, FROM THE COMMISSION WITHIN TWENTY-FIVE DAYS
 OF  THE  DECISION.  THE REQUEST MUST INCLUDE ALL DISPUTED MATERIAL FACTS
 THAT THE APPLICANT/LICENSEE OR HIS OR HER ATTORNEY PLANS TO RAISE AT THE
 HEARING. HOWEVER, IF THE SUSPENSION OR REVOCATION OF THE  LICENSE  IS  A
 RESULT  OF  A  DEADLY  ACCIDENT,  THEN THE LICENSEE HAS ONLY TEN DAYS TO
 REQUEST A HEARING AND LICENSEE HAS FIFTEEN DAYS  IN  WHICH  TO  FILE  AN
 EXCEPTION  TO  AN ADVERSE DECISION WITH THE COMMISSION. THE COMMISSION'S
 DECISION IS FINAL, AND MAY BE APPEALED TO THE  SUPREME  COURT  APPELLATE
 DIVISION WITHIN FORTY-FIVE DAYS.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.