S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         5043
                              2015-2016 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                   February 10, 2015
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by M. of A. PERRY -- read once and referred to the Committee
         on Health
       AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to HIV-related  test-
         ing  without  subject  person's consent and disclosure of confidential
         HIV-related information under certain circumstances
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1. Subdivision 6 of section 2781 of the public health law, as
    2  amended by chapter 308 of the laws  of  2010,  is  amended  to  read  as
    3  follows:
    4    6.  The  provisions of this section shall not apply to the performance
    5  of an [HIV related] HIV-RELATED test:
    6    (a) by a health care provider or health facility in  relation  to  the
    7  procuring,  processing,  distributing  or use of a human body or a human
    8  body part, including organs,  tissues,  eyes,  bones,  arteries,  blood,
    9  semen,  or other body fluids, for use in medical research or therapy, or
   10  for transplantation to individuals provided,  however,  that  where  the
   11  test  results  are communicated to the subject, post-test counseling, as
   12  described in subdivision five of  this  section,  shall  nonetheless  be
   13  required; or
   14    (b)  for  the  purpose  of  research  if the testing is performed in a
   15  manner by which the identity of the test subject is not  known  and  may
   16  not be retrieved by the researcher; or
   17    (c) on a deceased person, when such test is conducted to determine the
   18  cause of death or for epidemiological purposes; or
   19    (d)  conducted pursuant to section twenty-five hundred-f of this chap-
   20  ter; or
   21    (e) BY A HEALTH CARE PROVIDER AUTHORIZED BY  LAW  TO  ADMINISTER  SUCH
   22  TEST  WHERE  THE  TEST  SUBJECT  IS COMATOSE OR OTHERWISE UNABLE TO GIVE
   23  CONSENT AS PROVIDED IN THIS SECTION AND THE PERSON SEEKING THE  TEST  IS
   24  AN  ENDANGERED  WORKER  WHO  HAS REASONABLE EVIDENCE THAT AN EXCHANGE OF
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD03511-01-5
       A. 5043                             2
    1  BODILY FLUIDS HAS INADVERTENTLY OCCURRED WHILE ACTING WITHIN  THE  SCOPE
    2  OF HIS OR HER WORK.  FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS PARAGRAPH, THE DEFINITIONS
    3  PROVIDED  IN PARAGRAPH (B) OF SUBDIVISION FOUR-A OF SECTION TWENTY-SEVEN
    4  HUNDRED EIGHTY-TWO OF THIS ARTICLE SHALL APPLY; OR
    5    (F)  in  situations  involving  occupational  exposures which create a
    6  significant risk  of  contracting  or  transmitting  HIV  infection,  as
    7  defined  in  regulations  of  the  department  and pursuant to protocols
    8  adopted by the department,
    9    (i) provided that:
   10    (A) the person who is the  source  of  the  occupational  exposure  is
   11  deceased,  comatose or is determined by his or her attending health care
   12  professional to lack mental capacity to consent to an HIV  related  test
   13  and is not reasonably expected to recover in time for the exposed person
   14  to  receive  appropriate medical treatment, as determined by the exposed
   15  person's attending health care professional who would order  or  provide
   16  such treatment;
   17    (B) there is no person available or reasonably likely to become avail-
   18  able  who  has the legal authority to consent to the HIV related test on
   19  behalf of the source person in time for the exposed  person  to  receive
   20  appropriate medical treatment; and
   21    (C)  the  exposed  person will benefit medically by knowing the source
   22  person's HIV test results, as determined by the exposed person's  health
   23  care professional and documented in the exposed person's medical record;
   24    (ii) in which case
   25    (A) a provider shall order an anonymous HIV test of the source person;
   26  and
   27    (B)  the  results  of such anonymous test, but not the identity of the
   28  source person, shall be disclosed only  to  the  attending  health  care
   29  professional  of  the exposed person solely for the purpose of assisting
   30  the exposed person in making appropriate decisions regarding  post-expo-
   31  sure medical treatment; and
   32    (C)  the  results  of  the  test  shall not be disclosed to the source
   33  person or placed in the source person's medical record.
   34    S 2. Subdivision 1 of section 2782 of the public health law is amended
   35  by adding a new paragraph (r) and such section is amended  by  adding  a
   36  new subdivision 4-a to read as follows:
   37    (R) A PHYSICIAN OR OTHER PERSON PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION FOUR-A OF THIS
   38  SECTION.
   39    4-A.  (A)  SOLELY IN EITHER INSTANCES ARISING FROM AN HIV-RELATED TEST
   40  PERFORMED PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH (E) OF SUBDIVISION SIX OF SECTION  TWEN-
   41  TY-SEVEN  HUNDRED  EIGHTY-ONE  OF  THIS ARTICLE OR IN INSTANCES IN WHICH
   42  CONFIDENTIAL HIV-RELATED INFORMATION  PERTAINING  TO  A  PERSON  WHO  IS
   43  SUBJECT  TO THE PERFORMANCE OF AN HIV-RELATED TEST PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH
   44  (E) OF SUBDIVISION SIX OF SECTION  TWENTY-SEVEN  HUNDRED  EIGHTY-ONE  OF
   45  THIS ARTICLE IS CONTAINED WITHIN THE MEDICAL RECORDS OF A HEALTH FACILI-
   46  TY,  AND  NOTWITHSTANDING  ANY INCONSISTENT PROVISION OF THIS SECTION, A
   47  PHYSICIAN MAY DISCLOSE CONFIDENTIAL HIV-RELATED INFORMATION TO AN ENDAN-
   48  GERED WORKER. IN FURTHERANCE OF SUCH A  DISCLOSURE  AND  NOTWITHSTANDING
   49  ANY  INCONSISTENT  PROVISION  OF  THIS  SECTION,  A  HEALTH FACILITY MAY
   50  DISCLOSE CONFIDENTIAL HIV-RELATED INFORMATION TO A PHYSICIAN  DESIGNATED
   51  BY AN ENDANGERED WORKER.
   52    (B) FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVISION AND FOR THE PURPOSES OF PARA-
   53  GRAPH  (E) OF SUBDIVISION SIX OF SECTION TWENTY-SEVEN HUNDRED EIGHTY-ONE
   54  OF THIS ARTICLE, THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL HAVE THE FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
   55    (1) "ENDANGERED WORKER" MEANS A WORKER  WHO  MAY  HAVE  BEEN  EXPOSED,
   56  WITHIN  THE COURSE AND SCOPE OF SUCH PERSON'S WORK, TO HIV UNDER CIRCUM-
       A. 5043                             3
    1  STANCES THAT PRESENT A RISK OF TRANSMISSION OF HIV TO SUCH WORKER FROM A
    2  PERSON WHO IS SUBJECT TO THE PERFORMANCE OF AN HIV-RELATED TEST,  OR  ON
    3  WHOM SUCH A TEST HAS BEEN PERFORMED, PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH (E) OF SUBDI-
    4  VISION SIX OF SECTION TWENTY-SEVEN HUNDRED EIGHTY-ONE OF THIS ARTICLE.
    5    (2)  "PHYSICIAN"  MEANS  A  PHYSICIAN  WHO  IS  TREATING  OR  HAS BEEN
    6  CONSULTED BY AN ENDANGERED WORKER.
    7    (3) "WORKER"  INCLUDES  A  HEALTH  CARE  PROVIDER,  A  NATURAL  PERSON
    8  EMPLOYED  BY A HEALTH FACILITY, OR ANY OTHER NATURAL PERSON WHO MAY HAVE
    9  BEEN EXPOSED, WITHIN THE COURSE AND SCOPE OF SUCH PERSON'S WORK, TO  HIV
   10  UNDER  CIRCUMSTANCES  THAT PRESENT A RISK OF TRANSMISSION OF HIV TO SUCH
   11  PERSON FROM A PERSON WHO IS SUBJECT TO THE PERFORMANCE OF AN HIV-RELATED
   12  TEST, OR ON WHOM SUCH A TEST HAS BEEN PERFORMED, PURSUANT  TO  PARAGRAPH
   13  (E)  OF  SUBDIVISION  SIX  OF SECTION TWENTY-SEVEN HUNDRED EIGHTY-ONE OF
   14  THIS ARTICLE.
   15    S 3. This act shall take effect  immediately.    The  commissioner  of
   16  health is authorized to promulgate any and all rules and regulations and
   17  take  any other measures necessary to implement this act on an emergency
   18  basis.