Assembly Bill A1351

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1351
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              January 9, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A. GONZALEZ-ROJAS, BICHOTTE HERMELYN, SEAWRIGHT,
   REYES, SHIMSKY, FORREST, LEVENBERG, SEPTIMO -- read once and  referred
   to the Committee on Health
 
 AN  ACT  to amend the public health law, in relation to certification of
   fetal death certificates by a midwife or physician assistant

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Section 4161 of the public health law, as amended by chap-
 ter 436 of the laws of 1967, the section heading and subdivisions 2  and
 3 as amended by chapter 153 of the laws of 2011, subdivisions 1 and 4 as
 amended  by  chapter  352  of  the  laws  of 2013, is amended to read as
 follows:
   § 4161. Fetal death certificates; form and content[; physicians, nurse
 practitioners, midwives, and hospital administrators].   1. The  certif-
 icate  of  fetal  death and the report of fetal death shall contain such
 information and be in such  form  as  the  commissioner  may  prescribe;
 provided  however  that  commencing  on or after the implementation date
 under section forty-one hundred forty-eight of this article, information
 and signatures required by this subdivision shall be obtained  and  made
 in  accordance  with section forty-one hundred forty-eight of this arti-
 cle, except that unless requested by the [woman] BIRTHING PARENT neither
 the certificate nor the report of fetal death shall contain the name  of
 the [woman] BIRTHING PARENT, [her] THE BIRTHING PARENT'S social security
 number  or  any  other information which would permit [her] THE BIRTHING
 PARENT to be identified except as  provided  in  this  subdivision.  The
 report  shall state that a certificate of fetal death was filed with the
 commissioner and the date of such filing. The commissioner shall develop
 a unique, confidential identifier to be used on the certificate of fetal
 death to be used in connection with the exercise of  the  commissioner's
 authority  to  monitor the quality of care provided by any individual or
 entity licensed to perform an abortion in this state and to permit coor-
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD03295-01-5
              

 A. 1351                             2
 
 dination of data concerning the  medical  history  of  the  [woman]  THE
 BIRTHING  PARENT  for  purposes  of  conducting  surveillance scientific
 studies and research pursuant to the  provisions  of  paragraph  (j)  of
 subdivision one of section two hundred six of this chapter.
   2.  In  each case where a physician [or], nurse practitioner, MIDWIFE,
 OR PHYSICIAN ASSISTANT was in attendance at or after a fetal  death,  it
 is  the duty of such [physician or nurse] practitioner to certify to the
 birth and to the cause of death on the fetal death certificate. [Where a
 nurse-midwife was in attendance at a fetal death it is the duty of  such
 nurse-midwife  to  certify to the birth but, he or she shall not certify
 to the cause of death on the fetal death certificate.]
   3. Fetal deaths occurring without the attendance of  a  [physician  or
 nurse] practitioner as provided in subdivision two of this section shall
 be  treated  as  deaths  without medical attendance, as provided in this
 article.
   4. When a fetal death occurs in a  hospital,  except  in  those  cases
 where  certificates  are  issued  by  coroners or medical examiners, the
 person in charge of such hospital or [his or her] SUCH  PERSON'S  desig-
 nated  representative  shall  promptly  present  the  certificate to the
 physician [or], nurse practitioner, MIDWIFE, OR PHYSICIAN  ASSISTANT  in
 attendance,  or a physician [or], nurse practitioner, MIDWIFE, OR PHYSI-
 CIAN ASSISTANT acting [in his or her] ON SUCH PRACTITIONER'S behalf, who
 shall promptly certify to the facts of birth and of fetal death, provide
 the medical information required by the certificate,  sign  the  medical
 certificate of birth and death, and thereupon return such certificate to
 such  person,  so  that  the  seventy-two  hour  registration time limit
 prescribed in section four thousand one hundred sixty of this title  can
 be met; provided, however that commencing on or after the implementation
 date under section forty-one hundred forty-eight of this article, infor-
 mation and signatures required by this subdivision shall be obtained and
 made  in  accordance  with section forty-one hundred forty-eight of this
 article.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.