BILL NUMBER: S8752

SPONSOR: KAVANAGH
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public health law, in relation to antimicrobial
resistance prevention and education

 
PURPOSE OF BILL:

This bill creates an antimicrobial stewardship program in every hospital
and nursing home, in order to reduce the development and spread of
infections that resist treatment with antibiotics or other antimicrobial
medicines.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of the bill amends the public health law by adding a new
section 2803-z.  Subdivision one of the new Section 2308-z requires an
antimicrobial stewardship program at every general hospital and nursing
home in New York State and provides that each program shall be reviewed
              

at least annually and shall incorporate an ongoing process to measure
the impact of the program.

Subdivision two requires every general hospital and nursing home to
ensure that appropriate personnel receive antimicrobial resistance
training in addition to other existing infection control training.
Subdivision three authorizes the This section also authorizes the Health
Commissioner to promulgate any rules necessary to implement the
provisions of the new section.

Section 2 of the bill sets forth the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Antimicrobial-resistant "superbugs" are bacteria and other microbes that
have become immune to antibiotics and other antimicrobial medicines, and
as a result, cause infections that are difficult to cure, and sometimes
deadly. The World Health Organization, the United Nations General Assem-
bly, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the New York
State Department of Health, and many other major public health organiza-
tions have recognized antimicrobial-resistant infections as a public
health crisis. In the U.S., nearly 3 million people are infected and as
many as 35,000 die every year from antimicrobial-resistant infections,
according to the CDC's 2019 Antibiotic Resistance Threats Report.

This bill establishes an antimicrobial stewardship program at every
general hospital and nursing home to ensure that proper protocols are in
place to stop the spread of antimicrobial-resistant disease. These
programs, which will meet or exceed Medicaid and Medicare conditions of
participation for antimicrobial programs in health care facilities, will
be reviewed annually and there will be ongoing processes to improve the
programs.

This legislation will reduce the development and spread of antimicrobial
resistance and antimicrobial-resistant infections in humans and preserve
the effectiveness of medically important antimicrobials for treating
disease for future generations.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

This is a new bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

None

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become a law. Effective immediately, any rules and regulations necessary
to implement the provisions of this act on its effective date are
authorized to be made and completed on or before such date.