Bill Text: NY A02893 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Makes community violence prevention services available, to the extent permitted by federal law, to any Medicaid beneficiary who has received medical treatment for an injury sustained as a result of an act of community violence and has been referred by a certified or licensed health care provider or social services provider to receive community violence prevention services from a qualified violence prevention professional.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 33-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2023-06-09 - substituted by s580a [A02893 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A02893-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          2893

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 31, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced by M. of A. GONZALEZ-ROJAS, ANDERSON, CUNNINGHAM -- read once
          and referred to the Committee on Health

        AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to the provision of
          and payment for violence prevention programs

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. The social services law is amended by adding a new  section
     2  367-x to read as follows:
     3    §  367-x. Payment for violence prevention programs. 1. As used in this
     4  section, the following terms shall have the following definitions:
     5    (a) "Community  violence"  means  intentional  acts  of  interpersonal
     6  violence  committed by individuals who are not intimately related to the
     7  victim.
     8    (b) "Community violence prevention services" means  evidence-informed,
     9  trauma-informed,  culturally responsive, supportive and non-psychothera-
    10  peutic services provided by  a  qualified  violence  prevention  profes-
    11  sional,  within  or  outside  of  a clinical setting, for the purpose of
    12  promoting improved health outcomes, trauma recovery, and positive behav-
    13  ioral change, preventing injury recidivism and reducing  the  likelihood
    14  that  individuals  who  are victims of community violence will commit or
    15  promote violence themselves. "Community  violence  prevention  services"
    16  may  include  the  provision of peer support and counseling, mentorship,
    17  conflict  mediation,  crisis  intervention,  targeted  case  management,
    18  referrals  to  certified or licensed health care professionals or social
    19  services  providers,  case  management,  community  and  school  support
    20  services, patient education or screening services to victims of communi-
    21  ty violence.
    22    (c)  "Prevention  professional"  means  an  individual  who  works  in
    23  programs aimed to  address  specific  patient  needs,  such  as  suicide
    24  prevention,  violence prevention, alcohol avoidance, drug avoidance, and
    25  tobacco prevention. The goal of such individual's work is to reduce  the

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02654-01-3
        A. 2893                             2

     1  risk of relapse, injury, or re-injury of the patient. Prevention profes-
     2  sionals  work  in  a  variety  of  settings and provide appropriate case
     3  management, mediation, referral, and mentorship services.
     4    (d)  "Qualified  violence  prevention professional" means a prevention
     5  professional who meets all of the conditions  specified  in  subdivision
     6  five of this section.
     7    2.  Within  thirty  days  of  the  effective date of this section, the
     8  commissioner, in conjunction with  the  commissioner  of  health,  shall
     9  amend  the  Medicaid  state  plan  to make community violence prevention
    10  services available, to the extent permitted by federal law, to any Medi-
    11  caid beneficiary who has:
    12    (a) been exposed to community violence, or has a personal  history  of
    13  injury sustained as a result of an act of community violence; and
    14    (b)  been  referred by a certified or licensed health care provider or
    15  social  services  provider  to  receive  community  violence  prevention
    16  services  from  a qualified violence prevention professional, after such
    17  provider determines such beneficiary to be at elevated risk of a violent
    18  injury or retaliation resulting from another act of community violence.
    19    3. The commissioner, in conjunction with the commissioner  of  health,
    20  shall  seek  any  federal approvals necessary to implement this section,
    21  including, but not limited to, any  state  plan  amendments  or  federal
    22  waivers by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
    23    4.  The  commissioner, in conjunction with the commissioner of health,
    24  shall, in consultation with the  Health  Alliance  for  Violence  Inter-
    25  vention  (HAVI)  and  local  community-based and hospital-based violence
    26  prevention programs:
    27    (a) issue  guidance  on  the  use  of  community  violence  prevention
    28  services  for  beneficiaries who access these services under the medical
    29  assistance program; and
    30    (b)  determine  maximum  allowable  rates   for   community   violence
    31  prevention  services  based upon the medical assistance program fee-for-
    32  service outpatient rates for the same or similar services, or any  other
    33  data deemed reliable and relevant by the commissioner.
    34    5.  Any  prevention  professional seeking certification as a qualified
    35  violence prevention professional shall:
    36    (a) complete at least six months of full-time equivalent experience in
    37  providing community violence prevention services  or  youth  development
    38  services  through employment, volunteer work or as part of an internship
    39  experience;
    40    (b) complete a training and  certification  program  approved  by  the
    41  department  of  health  for qualified violence prevention professionals,
    42  approved in accordance with subdivision  six  of  this  section,  or  be
    43  certified  as  a violence prevention professional by the Health Alliance
    44  for Violence Intervention prior to the effective date of this section;
    45    (c) complete annually at least four  hours  of  continuing  education,
    46  offered  by  the  Health Alliance for Violence Intervention or any other
    47  provider approved by the commissioner, in conjunction with  the  commis-
    48  sioner  of  health,  in  the  field  of  community  violence  prevention
    49  services;
    50    (d) complete prevention professionals training for the  population  of
    51  patients with whom they work; and
    52    (e) satisfy any other requirements established by the commissioner, in
    53  conjunction  with  the  commissioner  of  health, for certification as a
    54  qualified violence prevention professional.
    55    6. Within ninety days of the  effective  date  of  this  section,  the
    56  department  of health shall approve at least one governmental or nongov-
        A. 2893                             3

     1  ernmental  accrediting  body  with  expertise  in   community   violence
     2  prevention  services  to  review  and approve training and certification
     3  programs for qualified violence prevention professionals. The  accredit-
     4  ing  body  shall  approve  programs  that  such  body determines, in its
     5  discretion, will adequately prepare  individuals  to  provide  community
     6  violence prevention services to individuals who are victims of community
     7  violence.    Such  programs  shall include at least thirty-five hours of
     8  training, collectively addressing all of the following:
     9    (a) the profound effects of trauma and  violence  and  the  basics  of
    10  trauma-informed care; and
    11    (b)  community  violence  prevention  strategies,  including,  but not
    12  limited to, conflict mediation and  retaliation  prevention  related  to
    13  community  violence; case management and advocacy practices; and patient
    14  privacy and the federal Health Insurance Portability and  Accountability
    15  Act of 1996, P.L. 104-191, as amended from time to time, (HIPAA).
    16    7.  Any  entity  that  employs  or contracts with a qualified violence
    17  prevention  professional  to  provide  community   violence   prevention
    18  services shall:
    19    (a)  maintain  documentation  that  the  qualified violence prevention
    20  professional has met all of the conditions described in subdivision  six
    21  of this section; and
    22    (b)  ensure  that  the  qualified  violence prevention professional is
    23  providing community violence prevention services in compliance with  any
    24  applicable  standards  of  care, rules, regulations and governing law of
    25  the state or federal government.
    26    8. Nothing in this section shall alter the scope of practice  for  any
    27  health  care  professional  or  authorize  the  delivery  of health care
    28  services in a setting or in a manner that is not currently authorized.
    29    9. This section shall be implemented only to the extent  that  federal
    30  financial   participation   is  available,  and  any  necessary  federal
    31  approvals have been obtained.
    32    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.