S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
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10164--A
I N S E N A T E
May 1, 2026
___________
Introduced by Sen. CLEARE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Health -- committee
discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
to said committee
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to consent to include
patient information in a general hospital facility directory
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
2805-aa to read as follows:
§ 2805-AA. GENERAL HOSPITAL FACILITY DIRECTORIES. 1. NO GENERAL HOSPI-
TAL SHALL INCLUDE ANY PATIENT IN A FACILITY DIRECTORY WITHOUT FIRST
OBTAINING VERBAL AND WRITTEN INFORMED CONSENT FROM THE PATIENT OR THE
PATIENT'S LEGAL REPRESENTATIVE. IN ORDER FOR SUCH CONSENT TO BE VALID,
THE GENERAL HOSPITAL SHALL INFORM THE PATIENT THAT THE INFORMATION
CONTAINED WITHIN THE FACILITY DIRECTORY MAY BE SHARED WITH OTHERS, AND
THE PATIENT SHALL RECEIVE A COPY OF THE GENERAL HOSPITAL'S POLICY ON THE
FACILITY DIRECTORY.
2. IF THE OPPORTUNITY TO CONSENT TO INCLUSION IN THE FACILITY DIRECTO-
RY CANNOT PRACTICABLY BE PROVIDED BECAUSE OF THE PATIENT'S INCAPACITY,
PROVIDED THE PATIENT'S LEGAL REPRESENTATIVE IS NOT PRACTICABLY AVAIL-
ABLE, OR AN EMERGENCY CIRCUMSTANCE, A GENERAL HOSPITAL MAY INCLUDE THE
PATIENT IN THE FACILITY DIRECTORY AND MAY DISCLOSE SUCH PATIENT'S IDEN-
TIFYING INFORMATION, IF SUCH DISCLOSURE:
(A) IS CONSISTENT WITH A PRIOR EXPRESSED PREFERENCE OF THE INDIVIDUAL,
IF ANY, THAT IS KNOWN TO THE GENERAL HOSPITAL; AND
(B) IS IN THE INDIVIDUAL'S BEST INTEREST, AS DETERMINED BY GENERAL
HOSPITAL STAFF, IN THE EXERCISE OF PROFESSIONAL JUDGMENT.
§ 2. This act shall take effect eighteen months after it shall have
become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15606-05-6