NY State Senate Bill 2025-S5063

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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Date of Action	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Feb 18, 2025	referred to health

2025-S5063 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Health
Law Section:: Public Health Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §2805-o, Pub Health L; amd §7, Veterans' Services L

2025-S5063 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires nursing homes, residential health care facilities, and adult care facilities to ask patients if they have a service-connected disability rating from the federal department of veterans affairs; requires such information to be delivered to the department of veterans' services and transmitted to city and county veterans' services agencies and officers.

2025-S5063 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S5063

SPONSOR: ASHBY
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public health law and the veterans' services law, in
relation to veteran information collected by certain facilities

 
PURPOSE:

To ensure that all veterans with a service-connected disability rating
through the federal VA are notified of all their benefits.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends current law section 2805-o of the public health law to
require every nursing home, adult home and assisted living home to add
an additional question at intake of "Do you have a service-connected
disability rating through the federal VA?" It would also require these
homes to solicit this information from current residents who predate
this legislation.

Section 2 requires the State Department of Veterans to document the
information internally and also communicate the veteran status to the
nearest office of the department of veterans, the nearest county or city
veterans' services agency and the nearest accredited veterans' service
officer.

Section 3 sets the effective date to one year after it becomes law.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

It is disheartening whenever we hear a veteran who doesn't know about a
certain benefit that could be saving money and receiving more patient-
centered care. For a Veteran with a service-connected disability rating
at 70% or greater, the federal Department of Veterans Affairs will pay
State Veterans Nursing Homes the full cost to provide skilled nursing to
that Veteran (38 U.S.C. Section 1745).  Yet, we are still hearing of
veterans in private nursing homes who are using Medicaid and relying on
family to pay. When these families hear their loved ones already qualify
for the federal government to pay for their care, they are overwhelmed
by relief. These Veteran Homes may be the best places for our veterans,
as their needs are truly understood.

Since 1993 there have been NYS laws on the books trying to identify
veterans in nursing homes; most recently, in 2021,1egislation was added
to ask veteran residents: "Have you ever served in the United States
military?" Yet, somehow NY is still missing the mark. We cannot allow
our veterans to continue to fall through the cracks. Our state has to do
a better job of informing veterans of the benefits they qualify for.
This legislation aims to do just that, by adding another question at
intake of new residents to nursing homes, adult homes and assisted
living homes: "Do you have a service-connected disability rating through
the federal VA?" This would allow nursing homes to alert the NYS Depart-
ment of Veterans Services during the intake process to identify a veter-
an who qualifies for the federal government to pay the full cost of
care, rather than the State.


This legislation seems like an easy win-win. Giving veterans the care
they need and utilizing federal funding to pay for it.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
One year after it becomes law.

2025-S5063 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5063
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 18, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  ASHBY  -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Health
 
 AN ACT to amend the public health law and the veterans' services law, in
   relation to veteran information collected by certain facilities
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Subdivisions 1 and 3 of section 2805-o of the public health
 law,  as  amended by chapter 75 of the laws of 2022, are amended to read
 as follows:
   1. Every nursing home and residential health care facility as  defined
 in  subdivisions two and three of section two thousand eight hundred one
 of this article and every adult care facility licensed and certified  by
 the  department  pursuant  to  title  two of article seven of the social
 services law or article forty-six-B of this chapter, including all adult
 homes, enriched housing programs, residences for adults, assisted living
 programs, and assisted living residences shall keep and  maintain  accu-
 rate records identifying veterans and their spouses residing within such
 facilities.  Such  information shall be solicited by nursing home and/or
 residential health care facility staff upon a patient's admission, noted
 on the admission form, and included with the patient's  file  by  asking
 the  [question]  QUESTIONS  "Have  you or your spouse ever served in the
 United States military?" AND "DO YOU HAVE A SERVICE-CONNECTED DISABILITY
 RATING THROUGH THE FEDERAL VA (DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS)?". In the
 case of patients currently residing at such nursing homes or residential
 health care facilities, staff shall solicit such information  by  asking
 the  [question]  QUESTIONS  "Have  you or your spouse ever served in the
 United States military?" AND "DO YOU HAVE A SERVICE-CONNECTED DISABILITY
 RATING THROUGH THE FEDERAL VA (DEPARTMENT OF  VETERANS  AFFAIRS)?"  from
 each  patient residing at such institution and update the patient's file
 to indicate veteran status.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD09296-01-5
 S. 5063                             2

 
   3. Every nursing home, residential  health  care  facility  and  every
 adult care facility licensed and certified by the department pursuant to
 title  two of article seven of the social services law or article forty-
 six-B of this chapter,  including  all  adult  homes,  enriched  housing
 programs,  residences for adults, assisted living programs, and assisted
 living residences, with the permission of individuals identifying  them-
 selves  as  veterans  or  spouses of veterans, shall transmit [such] ALL
 veteran status information ACQUIRED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION ONE OF  THIS
 SECTION to the [division] DEPARTMENT of veterans' services.
   §  2.  Section  7 of the veterans' services law, as amended by chapter
 449 of the laws of 2024, is amended to read as follows:
   § 7. Information on status of veterans receiving assistance.   Depart-
 ments, divisions, bureaus, boards, commissions and agencies of the state
 and political subdivisions thereof, which provide assistance, treatment,
 counseling,  care,  supervision  or  custody  in service areas involving
 health, mental health, family services, criminal justice or  employment,
 including  but  not  limited  to  the  office  of addiction services and
 supports, office of mental health, office of probation and  correctional
 alternatives,  office  of children and family services, office of tempo-
 rary and disability assistance,  department  of  health,  department  of
 labor,  local workforce investment boards, office for people with devel-
 opmental disabilities,  and  department  of  corrections  and  community
 supervision,  shall request assisted persons to provide information with
 regard to their veteran status  and  military  experiences.  Individuals
 identifying themselves as veterans, including individuals requesting and
 obtaining  a  veteran  notation on such individual's driver's license or
 non-driver identification card pursuant to sections four hundred  ninety
 and  five  hundred  two of the vehicle and traffic law, shall be advised
 that the department of veterans' services and  local  veterans'  service
 agencies  established  pursuant  to  section  fourteen  of  this article
 provide assistance to veterans  regarding  benefits  under  federal  and
 state  law.  Information  regarding veterans status and military service
 provided by assisted persons solely to implement this section  shall  be
 protected  as  personal  confidential information under article six-A of
 the public officers law against disclosure of confidential material, and
 used only to assist in the diagnosis, treatment, assessment and handling
 of the veteran's problems within the agency requesting such  information
 and in referring the veteran to the department of veterans' services for
 information  and  assistance  with  regard  to benefits and entitlements
 under federal and state law. ANY INFORMATION ON VETERAN STATUS  RECEIVED
 UNDER SECTION TWENTY-EIGHT HUNDRED FIVE-O OF THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW SHALL
 BE  DOCUMENTED  INTERNALLY  AND TRANSMITTED TO THE NEAREST OFFICE OF THE
 DEPARTMENT, THE NEAREST COUNTY OR CITY VETERANS'  SERVICES  AGENCY,  AND
 THE NEAREST ACCREDITED VETERANS' SERVICE OFFICER.
   §  3. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a
 law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any
 rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act  on  its
 effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such
 effective date.

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Senate Bill S5063

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Health Committee

Actions

2025-S5063 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S5063 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S5063 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S5063 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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Sponsored By

Jacob Ashby

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Health Committee

Actions

2025-S5063 (ACTIVE) - Details

2025-S5063 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2025-S5063 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S5063 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments