NY State Senate Bill 2019-S8997

Senate Bill S8997

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Requires the department of health to post on its website certain data relating to COVID-19 cases in hospitals and nursing homes

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Rules Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Sep 23, 2020	referred to rules

2019-S8997 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Rules
Law Section:: Public Health Law
Laws Affected:: Add §206-c, Pub Health L
Versions Introduced in 2021-2022 Legislative Session:: S4029

2019-S8997 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires the department of health to post on its website certain data relating to COVID-19 cases in hospitals and nursing homes, including total COVID-19 cases and deaths in nursing homes.

2019-S8997 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S8997

SPONSOR: SERINO
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public health law, in relation to requiring the
department of health to post on its website certain data relating to
COVID-19 cases in hospitals and nursing homes

 
PURPOSE:

To ensure full transparency regarding the New York State Department of
Health's reporting of nursing home deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Amends the public health law by adding a new section 206-c
that requires the Department of Health to compile and post weekly on
their website, in a conspicuous location and format capable of download
in a spreadsheet, data on the total number of confirmed cases and deaths
of COVID-19 in nursing homes, the total number of individuals trans-

ferred from a nursing home to a hospital due to COVID-19 and COVID-19
patients discharged from a hospital to a nursing home. Such data shall
be compiled and posted by county, date, nursing home and hospital and
shall include data since March 1, 2020.

Section 2: Provides the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The New York State Department of Health (DOH) has provided some data
regarding the impact COVID-19 had on New York State nursing homes,
however the state has drawn criticism over its reporting on this topic,
as critical information has repeatedly been left out. While DOH does
report fatalities that took place in nursing homes due to COVID-19, it
does not include information on diagnosed cases in nursing homes nor
does it include COVID-19 fatalities that resulted from cases originating
in nursing homes when residents were transferred to a hospital-both of
which are practices that are contrary to most other states' reporting.
For this reason, it is commonly accepted that the state is drastically
underreporting its number of nursing home-linked fatalities.

This legislation would expressly require comprehensive reporting from
the DOH to help lawmakers and the public better understand the full
impact of COVID-19 in New York's nursing homes. It would expressly
require the reporting of the total number of individuals transferred
from a nursing home to a hospital due to COVID-19 and the total number
of COVID-19 patients discharged from a hospital to a nursing home. Addi-
tionally, it requires the reporting to be provided in a format that can
be downloaded in a spreadsheet to ensure researchers and policymakers
can use it effectively. Such information will also be required to be
compiled and posted by county, data, nursing home and hospital, and will
require the inclusion of retroactive data starting from March 1, 2020.

By ensuring full transparency and greater access to data on this crisis,
New York State can better protect these vulnerable residents going
forward.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S8997 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8997
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                            September 23, 2020
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  SERINO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
 
 AN ACT to amend the public health law,  in  relation  to  requiring  the
   department  of  health to post on its website certain data relating to
   COVID-19 cases in hospitals and nursing homes
 
   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 section
 206-c to read as follows:
   § 206-C. SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS WITH RESPECT TO COVID-19  DATA.  1.  FOR
 THE PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL HAVE THE FOLLOW-
 ING MEANINGS:
   (A) "HOSPITAL" HAS THE SAME MEANING AS DEFINED BY SECTION TWENTY-EIGHT
 HUNDRED ONE OF THIS CHAPTER, AND SHALL INCLUDE ANY TEMPORARY HEALTH CARE
 FACILITY  IN  NEW YORK STATE ESTABLISHED BY THE STATE OR FEDERAL GOVERN-
 MENT IN RESPONSE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC OR ANY OTHER  PANDEMIC-RELATED
 RESPONSE.
   (B)  "NURSING HOME" HAS THE SAME MEANING AS DEFINED BY SECTION TWENTY-
 EIGHT HUNDRED ONE OF THIS CHAPTER.
   2. THE COMMISSIONER SHALL COMPILE AND POST ON THE DEPARTMENT'S WEBSITE
 IN A CONSPICUOUS LOCATION AND IN A  FORMAT  CAPABLE  OF  DOWNLOAD  IN  A
 SPREADSHEET FORMAT, THE FOLLOWING DATA ON A WEEKLY BASIS:
   (A) THE TOTAL NUMBER OF CONFIRMED CASES OF COVID-19 AND DEATHS RESULT-
 ING FROM COVID-19 IN NURSING HOMES IN NEW YORK STATE;
   (B)  THE TOTAL NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS WITH A CONFIRMED CASE OF COVID-19
 TRANSFERRED FROM A NURSING HOME TO A HOSPITAL IN NEW YORK STATE;
   (C) THE TOTAL NUMBER OF CONFIRMED DEATHS  OF  INDIVIDUALS  TRANSFERRED
 FROM  A  NURSING  HOME  TO A HOSPITAL RESULTING FROM A CONFIRMED CASE OF
 COVID-19; AND
   (D) THE TOTAL NUMBER OF INDIVIDUALS WITH A CONFIRMED CASE OF  COVID-19
 DISCHARGED FROM A HOSPITAL TO A NURSING HOME.
   3.  THE  DATA POSTED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION SHALL
 BE ORGANIZED BY COUNTY, DATE, NURSING  HOME,  AND  HOSPITAL,  AND  SHALL
 INCLUDE DATA RETROACTIVE TO MARCH FIRST, TWO THOUSAND TWENTY.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD17359-01-0

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