Bill Text: NY A06995 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requires healthcare facilities to maintain a fifty percent operating threshold of certain reusable healthcare protective textiles in their inventory unless a reprieve is provided for supply chain issues; provides a fine may be assessed for failure to comply, as determined by the commissioner.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to health [A06995 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A06995-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          6995

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                      May 10, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. SEPTIMO, STIRPE -- read once and referred to the
          Committee on Health

        AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to requiring  health-
          care  facilities  to  maintain  a fifty percent operating threshold of
          certain reusable healthcare protective textiles in their inventory

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

     1    Section  1. Section 2803 of the public health law is amended by adding
     2  a new subdivision 14 to read as follows:
     3    14. (a) The commissioner shall ensure that all  healthcare  facilities
     4  as  defined in paragraph (b) of this subdivision possess and maintain an
     5  operating threshold of at least fifty percent of all  reusable  personal
     6  protective  equipment  (PPE) as provided by a hygienically clean laundry
     7  service provider; provided, however, that upon request,  the  department
     8  may grant an extension or reprieve, at its sole and exclusive discretion
     9  if the healthcare facility demonstrates, to the commissioner's satisfac-
    10  tion, that such healthcare facility's inability to meet such requirement
    11  is solely attributable to supply chain issues that are beyond the hospi-
    12  tal's  control and purchasing PPE at market rates would facilitate price
    13  gouging by PPE vendors.
    14    (b) For purposes of this subdivision, the following terms  shall  have
    15  the following meanings:
    16    (i) "healthcare facility" shall mean hospitals, skilled nursing facil-
    17  ities,  outpatient  care  centers,  long-term  care facilities, physical
    18  therapy centers,  comprehensive  outpatient  rehabilitation  facilities,
    19  end-stage  renal  disease facilities, hospice, physician's offices, non-
    20  physician provider's offices, and laboratories;
    21    (ii) "personal protective equipment (PPE)" shall mean  any  protective
    22  textile which is available in reusable format, where deemed feasible and
    23  acceptable,  consistent  with  federal Centers for Disease Control guid-
    24  ance; and

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD11130-01-3
        A. 6995                             2

     1    (iii) "operating threshold" shall mean a constantly rotating stock  of
     2  PPE  textiles being used, returned to a laundry facility, processed by a
     3  hygienically clean certified facility,  and  returned  to  a  healthcare
     4  facility for use.
     5    (c) Failure to possess and maintain such a supply of PPE may result in
     6  a  fine  to  be determined by the department; provided, however, that no
     7  such revocation or suspension shall be ordered unless the department has
     8  provided the healthcare facility with  a  thirty-day  grace  period,  to
     9  achieve compliance with the requirements of paragraph (a) of this subdi-
    10  vision.
    11    §  2. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a
    12  law.