Assembly Bill A9554

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  9554

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                            January 15, 2010
                               ___________

Introduced  by M. of A. GOTTFRIED, DINOWITZ -- read once and referred to
  the Committee on Health

AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to death and felony
  crime reports in certain adult care facilities

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1.    Section 461-m of the social services law, as amended by
chapter 462 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as follows:
  S 461-m. Death and felony crime reporting.  The operator of  an  adult
home,  ENRICHED  HOUSING  PROGRAM  or residence for adults shall have an
affirmative duty to report any death, or attempted suicide of a resident
to the department OF HEALTH within twenty-four hours of its  occurrence,
and  shall also have an affirmative duty to report to an appropriate law
enforcement authority if [it is believed that] THE OPERATOR DISCOVERS AN
INCIDENT THAT THE OPERATOR BELIEVES OR REASONABLY SHOULD  BELIEVE  WOULD
CONSTITUTE  a  felony crime [may have been committed] against a resident
of such facility as soon as possible, or in  any  event  within  [forty-
eight]  TWENTY-FOUR  hours.    In  addition, the operator shall send any
reports involving a resident who had at any time received services  from
a  mental hygiene service provider to the state commission on quality of
care [for the mentally disabled] AND ADVOCACY FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILI-
TIES WITHIN  TWENTY-FOUR  HOURS  OF  THE  OCCURRENCE  OF  THE  DEATH  OR
ATTEMPTED  SUICIDE  OR OF THE DISCOVERY OF AN INCIDENT THAT THE OPERATOR
BELIEVED OR REASONABLY SHOULD HAVE BELIEVED TO BE A FELONY CRIME.
  S 2. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth  day  after  it  shall
have become a law; provided however, that the commissioner of health may
adopt,  amend,  suspend  or repeal any regulations or take other actions
necessary to enforce or implement the law prior to  and  in  preparation
for  the  taking  effect  of  the law; provided, however, such adoption,
amendment, suspension or repeal of  regulations  shall  not  have  legal
effect until the law takes effect.


 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD15282-02-0