Assembly Bill A5624A

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Enacts the mental health assessment and record keeping for the coroner's office act

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Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Assembly 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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Bill Amendments

2025-A5624 - Details

Current Committee:
Assembly Local Governments
Law Section:
County Law
Laws Affected:
Amd §674, County L; amd §4141, Pub Health L; amd §§3203, 3209, 3220 & 4510, Ins L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:
A9027

2025-A5624 - Summary

Enacts the mental health assessment and record keeping for the coroner's office act; requires the coroner, coroner and coroner's physician, or the medical examiner, to conduct a mental health assessment when a death occurs in such person's jurisdiction; requires death certificates list an underlying mental illness as the cause of death when a person commits suicide; requires life insurance policies to pay upon a suicide which the coroner, coroner and coroner's physician, or the medical examiner indicated an underlying mental illness as the cause of death.

2025-A5624 - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5624
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 18, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. LUCAS -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Local Governments
 
 AN ACT to amend the county law,  in  relation  to  enacting  the  mental
   health assessment and record keeping for the coroner's office act
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. This act shall be known and may be  cited  as  the  "mental
 health assessment and record keeping for the coroner's office act".
   §  2.  Subdivision  3  of  section 674 of the county law is amended by
 adding a new paragraph (c) to read as follows:
   (C) (I) THE CORONER OR CORONER AND CORONER'S PHYSICIAN, OR THE MEDICAL
 EXAMINER, ALSO SHALL MAKE OR CAUSE TO BE MADE, A MENTAL  HEALTH  ASSESS-
 MENT  WHICH  SHALL INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO, A THOROUGH EVALUATION
 OF THE INDIVIDUAL'S MEDICAL AND PSYCHIATRIC HISTORY AFTER  A  REVIEW  OF
 ANY  AVAILABLE  DOCUMENTATION,  INCLUDING  BUT NOT LIMITED TO MEDICATION
 RECORDS OR THERAPY REPORTS.  THE CORONER OR CORONER AND CORONER'S PHYSI-
 CIAN, OR THE MEDICAL EXAMINER,  SHALL  ACQUIRE  ANY  NECESSARY  MEDICAL,
 PSYCHIATRIC,  OR  THERAPY  RECORDS REQUIRED TO PERFORM THE MENTAL HEALTH
 ASSESSMENT AND SHALL KEEP SUCH RECORDS  CONFIDENTIAL  AND  PROTECTED  IN
 ACCORDANCE WITH ANY APPLICABLE PRIVACY LAWS.  SUCH RECORDS SHALL ONLY BE
 USED FOR THE MENTAL HEALTH ASSESSMENT, RESEARCH, AND PREVENTION EFFORTS.
   (II)  UPON  COMPLETION OF THE MENTAL HEALTH ASSESSMENT, THE CORONER OR
 CORONER AND CORONER'S PHYSICIAN, OR THE MEDICAL EXAMINER,  SHALL  REDUCE
 TO  WRITING ON A FORM PRESCRIBED BY THE COMMISSIONER OF HEALTH ANY FIND-
 INGS INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY INDICATIONS OF  MENTAL  DISTRESS
 OR  ILLNESS  AND  ANY EVIDENCE OF MENTAL HEALTH DISORDERS, INCLUDING BUT
 NOT LIMITED TO SCHIZOPHRENIA, DEPRESSION, PTSD,  AND  BIPOLAR  DISORDER.
 ANY  DOCUMENTS  PRODUCED  BY THE MENTAL HEALTH ASSESSMENT, INCLUDING BUT
 NOT LIMITED TO ANY FINDINGS, SHALL BE KEPT CONFIDENTIAL AND PROTECTED IN
 ACCORDANCE WITH ANY APPLICABLE PRIVACY LAWS.  SUCH DOCUMENTS SHALL  ONLY
 BE USED FOR RESEARCH AND PREVENTION EFFORTS.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08248-01-5
              

2025-A5624A (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:
Assembly Local Governments
Law Section:
County Law
Laws Affected:
Amd §674, County L; amd §4141, Pub Health L; amd §§3203, 3209, 3220 & 4510, Ins L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:
A9027

2025-A5624A (ACTIVE) - Summary

Enacts the mental health assessment and record keeping for the coroner's office act; requires the coroner, coroner and coroner's physician, or the medical examiner, to conduct a mental health assessment when a death occurs in such person's jurisdiction; requires death certificates list an underlying mental illness as the cause of death when a person commits suicide; requires life insurance policies to pay upon a suicide which the coroner, coroner and coroner's physician, or the medical examiner indicated an underlying mental illness as the cause of death.

2025-A5624A (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  5624--A
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 18, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. LUCAS -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Local Governments -- committee discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered
   reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
 
 AN  ACT to amend the county law, the public health law and the insurance
   law, in relation to enacting the mental health assessment  and  record
   keeping for the coroner's office act
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. This act shall be known and may be  cited  as  the  "mental
 health assessment and record keeping for the coroner's office act".
   §  2.  Subdivision  3  of  section 674 of the county law is amended by
 adding a new paragraph (c) to read as follows:
   (C) (I) THE CORONER OR CORONER AND CORONER'S PHYSICIAN, OR THE MEDICAL
 EXAMINER, ALSO SHALL MAKE OR CAUSE TO BE MADE, A MENTAL  HEALTH  ASSESS-
 MENT  WHICH  SHALL INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO, A THOROUGH EVALUATION
 OF THE INDIVIDUAL'S MEDICAL AND PSYCHIATRIC HISTORY AFTER  A  REVIEW  OF
 ANY  AVAILABLE  DOCUMENTATION,  INCLUDING  BUT NOT LIMITED TO MEDICATION
 RECORDS OR THERAPY REPORTS. THE CORONER OR CORONER AND CORONER'S  PHYSI-
 CIAN,  OR  THE  MEDICAL  EXAMINER,  SHALL ACQUIRE ANY NECESSARY MEDICAL,
 PSYCHIATRIC, OR THERAPY RECORDS REQUIRED TO PERFORM  THE  MENTAL  HEALTH
 ASSESSMENT.
   (II)  UPON  COMPLETION OF THE MENTAL HEALTH ASSESSMENT, THE CORONER OR
 CORONER AND CORONER'S PHYSICIAN, OR THE MEDICAL EXAMINER,  SHALL  REDUCE
 TO  WRITING ON A FORM PRESCRIBED BY THE COMMISSIONER OF HEALTH ANY FIND-
 INGS INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY INDICATIONS OF  MENTAL  DISTRESS
 OR  ILLNESS  AND  ANY EVIDENCE OF MENTAL HEALTH DISORDERS, INCLUDING BUT
 NOT LIMITED TO SCHIZOPHRENIA, DEPRESSION, PTSD, AND BIPOLAR DISORDER.
   (III) ANY DOCUMENTS ACQUIRED FOR OR  PRODUCED  BY  THE  MENTAL  HEALTH
 ASSESSMENT,  INCLUDING  BUT  NOT LIMITED TO ANY MEDICAL RECORDS, THERAPY
 NOTES, AND THE CORONER'S FINDINGS OTHER THAN SUCH FINDINGS  INCLUDED  ON
 THE  DEATH  CERTIFICATE,  SHALL  BE  KEPT  CONFIDENTIAL AND PROTECTED IN
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08248-02-5
              

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