NY State Senate Bill 2023-S8907

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Health 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
Mar 26, 2024	referred to health

co-Sponsors

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2023-S8907 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A9819
Current Committee:: Senate Health
Law Section:: Public Health Law
Laws Affected:: Add §2831, Pub Health L

2023-S8907 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Institutes a moratorium on the closure of hospitals until the department of health completes a comprehensive analysis and report on the impact of such closures on healthcare access in New York state.

2023-S8907 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S8907

SPONSOR: GONZALEZ
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public health law, in relation to instituting a
moratorium on the closure of hospitals until the department of health
completes a comprehensive analysis of the impact of such closures on
healthcare access in New York state

 
PURPOSE:

This legislation is designed to halt the current wave of hospital
closures by implementing a statewide moratorium. The bill requires the
Department of Health to collect and evaluate detailed data on healthcare
facilities throughout New York State. This data will be used to identify
and address the specific needs of distressed healthcare facilities,
thereby safeguarding healthcare access statewide.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Provides the title which is the "2024 Hospital Closure Mora-

torium Act."

Section 2: Provides legislative findings and declares a public emergency
regarding hospital closures across New York State.

Section 3: Amends the public health law by adding a new section 2831,
which:

(1) Provides the definition of "healthcare facility" that will be used
in this section.

(2) Creates a moratorium on the closure of hospitals until the Depart-
ment of Health completes a statewide report on the aggregate impact of
the closure of hospitals.

(3) Sets out the requirements of the report concerning

a. statewide data, including the number of healthcare facilities, the
number of hospital beds, the average and number of Medicare and Medicaid
recipients, historical and projected market shares of all healthcare
providers, the median distance between providers, and

b. each healthcare facility, including patient demographics, the number
of Medicaid and Medicare recipients, the number of medical staff
employed, and transportation options for users of the facility.

(4) Requires the Department of Health to engage public health experts,
hospital labor representatives, community leaders, and New York State
residents when completing the report. The report must be distributed to
leaders in the legislature and posted publicly on the Department of
Health's website.

(5) Requires that the report be used to designate "distressed healthcare
zones," in which the Department of Health must reject any application
for closure by a healthcare facility and prioritize allocations of
healthcare spending.

Section 4: Provides that the bill shall take effect immediately and that
the commissioner of health and public health and the health planning
council shall make regulations and take other actions reasonably neces-
sary to implement the act.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

New York State is experiencing an undeclared healthcare emergency.
Currently, at least 12 hospitals in the state have filed applications
for closure, and 21 rural New York hospitals are at risk of immediate
closure. This trend threatens access to essential healthcare services
for millions of New Yorkers across the State and exacerbates existing
health disparities, disproportionately impacting the most vulnerable
populations in underserved areas.

In response to this urgent situation, this legislation imposes a morato-
rium on the closure of healthcare facilities, providing a crucial oppor-
tunity for the New York Department of Health to better understand this
crisis and intervene effectively. During this moratorium, the State
Department of Health will collect and analyze statewide data and data
from individual healthcare facilities to assess the current state of
healthcare in New York State and determine how further closures of
healthcare facilities might impact healthcare locally and statewide. By
examining factors such as geographic distribution, patient demographics,
financial viability, and quality of care, the Department of Health can
identify areas of need and develop targeted interventions to address
this ongoing healthcare emergency.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None to the State

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.

2023-S8907 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8907
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              March 26, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sens. GONZALEZ, BAILEY, HINCHEY -- read twice and ordered
   printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health
 
 AN ACT to amend the public health law,  in  relation  to  instituting  a
   moratorium  on the closure of hospitals until the department of health
   completes a comprehensive analysis of the impact of such  closures  on
   healthcare access in New York state

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may  be  cited  as
 the "2024 hospital closure moratorium act".
   §  2.  Legislative findings and declaration of emergency. The legisla-
 ture hereby finds and declares all of the following:
   1. The serious public emergency regarding hospital closures across New
 York state continues to exist, and this emergency puts individuals at  a
 heightened risk of death, illness, and economic hardship. These closures
 impact  both  public  and  private  healthcare  facilities, full-service
 hospitals, and critical care units.
   2. The legislature therefore finds  and  declares  that  in  order  to
 prevent  death, hardship, and other negative health outcomes to New York
 state residents, the provisions of this act  are  necessary  to  protect
 public  health, safety, and general welfare. The necessity in the public
 interest for the provisions hereinafter enacted is hereby declared as  a
 matter of legislative determination.
   §  3. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 2831 to
 read as follows:
   § 2831. HOSPITAL CLOSURE MORATORIUM. 1. FOR PURPOSES OF THIS  SECTION,
 "HEALTHCARE  FACILITY" SHALL MEAN HOSPITALS AND OTHER HEALTHCARE CENTERS
 PROVIDING EMERGENCY  SERVICES,  INTENSIVE  CARE  SERVICES,  CARDIAC  AND
 STROKE  SERVICES, MATERNITY SERVICES, CANCER TREATMENT SERVICES, PSYCHI-
 ATRIC EMERGENCY SERVICES, GENDER IDENTITY SERVICES, URGENT CARE SERVICES
 AND PEDIATRIC SERVICES.
   2. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY PROVISION OF LAW, RULE  OR  REGULATION  TO  THE
 CONTRARY,  THE  STATE  SHALL  INSTITUTE  A  MORATORIUM ON THE CLOSURE OF
 HOSPITALS UNTIL THE DEPARTMENT COMPLETES A  STATEWIDE  REPORT  EXAMINING
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD15041-01-4
 S. 8907                             2
 
 THE  AGGREGATE  IMPACT OF SUCH CLOSURES ON HEALTHCARE ACCESS IN NEW YORK
 STATE.  DURING SUCH MORATORIUM, NO HOSPITAL SHALL CLOSE OR REDUCE CAPAC-
 ITY BELOW THE HOSPITAL'S CAPACITY AS OF  THE  DATE  THE  MORATORIUM  WAS
 IMPOSED  UNLESS  THE DEPARTMENT REQUESTS AN EXEMPTION FOR THE HEALTHCARE
 FACILITY AND SAID EXEMPTION IS APPROVED BY THE LEGISLATURE.
   3. THE REPORT SHALL COLLECT DATA INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO:
   (A) STATEWIDE DATA ON:
   (I) THE NUMBER OF HEALTHCARE FACILITIES IN EACH COUNTY;
   (II) THE AVERAGE NUMBER OF TOTAL AND AVAILABLE HOSPITAL BEDS  IN  EACH
 COUNTY;
   (III)  THE AVERAGE NUMBER OF MEDICARE AND MEDICAID RECIPIENTS, AND THE
 PERCENTAGE OF INSURED AND UNINSURED PATIENTS SERVED, BY COUNTY;
   (IV) THE NUMBER OF MEDICARE AND MEDICAID RECIPIENTS, AND THE  PERCENT-
 AGE OF INSURED AND UNINSURED PATIENTS SERVED, BY COUNTY;
   (V)  HISTORICAL  AND  PROJECTED MARKET SHARES OF ALL HOSPITAL NETWORKS
 AND HEALTHCARE SERVICE PROVIDERS IN NEW YORK STATE; AND
   (VI) THE MEDIAN DISTANCE BETWEEN HEALTHCARE  FACILITIES  THAT  PROVIDE
 SIMILAR SERVICES; AND
   (B) DATA BY HEALTHCARE FACILITIES ON:
   (I) THE RACE, SEX, GENDER, AGE, ECONOMIC STATUS, AND DISABILITY STATUS
 OF PATIENTS SERVED BY EACH HEALTHCARE FACILITY;
   (II)  THE NUMBER OF MEDICARE AND MEDICAID RECIPIENTS, AND THE PERCENT-
 AGE OF INSURED AND UNINSURED PATIENTS SERVED;
   (III) THE NUMBER OF PHYSICIANS AND PROFESSIONAL STAFF EMPLOYED AT  THE
 HEALTHCARE FACILITY; AND
   (IV)  ACCESS TO THE HEALTHCARE FACILITY BY PUBLIC OR PRIVATE TRANSPOR-
 TATION, INCLUDING TRANSPORTATION SPONSORED BY  THE  HEALTHCARE  FACILITY
 ITSELF.
   4. IN COMPLETING THIS REPORT, THE DEPARTMENT SHALL MEANINGFULLY ENGAGE
 PUBLIC  HEALTH EXPERTS, LABOR REPRESENTATIVES OF THE HOSPITAL WORKFORCE,
 COMMUNITY LEADERS AND RESIDENTS OF NEW YORK STATE. THE FINDINGS OF  SUCH
 REPORT  SHALL  BE PROVIDED IN ELECTRONIC FORMAT AND SHALL BE DISTRIBUTED
 TO THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT AND MINORITY LEADER OF THE SENATE, THE SPEAK-
 ER AND MINORITY LEADER OF THE ASSEMBLY, THE CHAIR OF THE SENATE STANDING
 COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, AND THE CHAIR OF THE ASSEMBLY HEALTH COMMITTEE. THE
 DEPARTMENT SHALL PUBLICLY POST THE REPORT ON  THE  DEPARTMENT'S  WEBSITE
 WITHIN ONE WEEK OF THE FILING.
   5.  THE  REPORT  SHALL  USE  THE DATA COLLECTED TO DEFINE AND IDENTIFY
 AREAS AT RISK OF FUTURE HOSPITAL CLOSURES. THESE AREAS SHALL  BE  DESIG-
 NATED  "DISTRESSED HEALTHCARE ZONES". THE DEPARTMENT SHALL REJECT APPLI-
 CATIONS FOR CLOSURES ISSUED BY HEALTHCARE FACILITIES IN  ANY  DISTRESSED
 HEALTHCARE  ZONE.  DISTRESSED HEALTHCARE ZONES SHALL BE PRIORITIZED WHEN
 ALLOCATING HEALTHCARE SPENDING.
   § 4. This act shall  take  effect  immediately.  The  commissioner  of
 health  and  the  public  health  and health planning council shall make
 regulations and take other actions  reasonably  necessary  to  implement
 this act.

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Senate Bill S8907

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Health Committee

co-Sponsors

2023-S8907 (ACTIVE) - Details

2023-S8907 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S8907 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2023-S8907 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S8907

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Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Health Committee

co-Sponsors

2023-S8907 (ACTIVE) - Details

2023-S8907 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2023-S8907 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2023-S8907 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments