BILL NUMBER: S6375

SPONSOR: SAVINO
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act in relation to directing the commissioner of health to conduct a
study of the delivery of ambulatory and other medical care in response
to the COVID-19 pandemic

 
PURPOSE:

This legislation intent is to clarify notification of a community diag-
nostic and treatment center during a pandemic and or under general
circumstance.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1. The commissioner of health shall conduct a study to the
delivery of primary care, urgent care, and commonly used ambulatory
health care services in response to the COVID-19.
a. Entities to be studied shall not include ambulatory surgery centers
              

or office-based surgery practices.

b. The study shall examine the impact of the respective entities on the
delivery, quality, accessibility, and cost of ambulatory care on Staten
Island. The commissioner shall make recommendations to improve the
delivery, quality, accessibility, and cost of the full range of ambula-
tory health care services required by the community.

c. during the study the operator of a clinic, urgent care, or such major
ambulatory health care practice shall give a 30-day notice to the
department and locally elected official before closure, relocation or
decertification.

d. The commissioner of health shall report and publish on the department
of health's website, and transmit the commissioner's findings and recom-
mendations to the governor, the speaker of the assembly, the minority
leader of the assembly, the temporary president of the senate and the
minority leader of the senate on or before one year from the date this
act shall take effect.

Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

This bill is similar to S.8719 of 2020 that was focused on delivery of
ambulatory care on Staten Island; this bill expands the study to the
entire state with a particular focus on response to COVID19.

In the Governor's veto message (VM 64 of 2020), he referenced a 2017
report by the Department of Health, this legislation would require a
updated version of this report with a focus on COVID-19 response.

From the veto message:

   "In accordance with Chapter 369 of the Laws of 2013,
   the Department of Health published a report in 2017 that
   looked at current innovations
   in the delivery of health care services, examining retail clinics,
   urgent care providers and major physician practices. The report
   explored the impact of these respective types of entities on the
   delivery, quality and cost of health care in the respective
   communities and regions in which they were found."

There are no public hospitals located on Staten Island and several other
areas throughout the state, resulting in public hospital deserts. Many
New York residents rely on private practice clinics, urgent care, and
ambulatory health clinics for services, including physicals, injury and
illness, lab tests and screening, pediatric care, and women's health.
The closure or relocation of any one provider can disenfranchise whole
communities and leave vulnerable persons without convenient access to
care.

The community of Staten Island needs a focused study of our access to
primary and urgent care in order to make better use of our current situ-
ation and better prepare for the future. The only recent effort like
this, a 2017 Department of Health study titled, Health Care Delivery
Models in New York State, looked at the impact of retail clinics, urgent
care, and ambulatory clinics drawing data from public reports, articles,
and other publications. The study concluded, mainly based on research
from other states, that these delivery methods can be beneficial because
of their convenience and sometimes, their affordability when compared to
traditional alternatives. This bill proposes to build upon that prior
study and focus on COVID-19.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

Similar to S. 8719 of 2020 that was vetoed by the Governor (VM 64 of
2020)

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.