Bill Text: NY S04186 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requires health insurers to provide coverage for long term medical care for Lyme disease and other tick borne related pathogens.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - REFERRED TO INSURANCE [S04186 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S04186-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          4186
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                      March 4, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by  Sen. KENNEDY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Insurance
        AN ACT to amend the insurance law and the workers' compensation law,  in
          relation  to  coverage  of long term medical care for Lyme disease and
          other tick borne related pathogens
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section  1.  Subsection  (i)  of  section 3216 of the insurance law is
     2  amended by adding a new paragraph 35 to read as follows:
     3    (35) Every insurer issuing a policy of accident and  health  insurance
     4  for  delivery  in  this  state  shall provide coverage for all costs for
     5  treatment of Lyme  disease  (Lyme  borreliosis)  and  other  tick  borne
     6  related  pathogens.  Such  treatment  shall include not less than thirty
     7  days of intravenous antibiotic therapy, sixty days  of  oral  antibiotic
     8  therapy,  or both, and shall provide further treatment if recommended by
     9  a physician licensed to practice medicine in the state of New York.
    10    § 2. Subsection (l) of section 3221 of the insurance law is amended by
    11  adding a new paragraph 21 to read as follows:
    12    (21) Every group or blanket policy delivered or issued for delivery in
    13  this state which provides hospital, surgical or medical  coverage  shall
    14  provide  coverage  for  all  costs  for  treatment of Lyme disease (Lyme
    15  borreliosis) and other tick  borne  related  pathogens.  Such  treatment
    16  shall include not less than thirty days of intravenous antibiotic thera-
    17  py,  sixty  days  of oral antibiotic therapy, or both, and shall provide
    18  further treatment if recommended by a  physician  licensed  to  practice
    19  medicine in the state of New York.
    20    §  3.  Section  4303  of  the insurance law is amended by adding a new
    21  subsection (ss) to read as follows:
    22    (ss) Every medical expense  indemnity  corporation,  hospital  service
    23  corporation  and  health service corporation which provides coverage for
    24  medical, surgical or major medical care shall provide coverage  for  all
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00383-01-9
        S. 4186                             2
     1  costs  for  treatment  of Lyme disease (Lyme borreliosis) and other tick
     2  borne related pathogens.   Such treatment shall include  not  less  than
     3  thirty  days of intravenous antibiotic therapy, sixty days of oral anti-
     4  biotic  therapy,  or both, and shall provide further treatment if recom-
     5  mended by a physician licensed to practice medicine in the state of  New
     6  York.
     7    §  4.  Paragraph  30  of  subdivision  2  of section 3 of the workers'
     8  compensation law, as renumbered by chapter 665 of the laws of  1971,  is
     9  renumbered  paragraph  31  and  a  new  paragraph 30 is added to read as
    10  follows:
    11    30. Lyme disease                           30. Any process involving
    12    (Lyme borreliosis)                         outdoor activity or
    13    and other tick borne                       treatment of animals.
    14    related pathogens.
    15    § 5. The closing paragraph of subdivision 2 of section 3 of the  work-
    16  ers' compensation law, as amended by chapter 666 of the laws of 1971, is
    17  amended to read as follows:
    18    Nothing  in paragraph [thirty] thirty-one of this subdivision shall be
    19  construed to apply to  any  disability  or  death  due  to  any  disease
    20  described in paragraph twenty-nine of this subdivision.
    21    §  6. Subdivision 9 of section 201 of the workers' compensation law is
    22  amended by adding a new paragraph C to read as follows:
    23    C. "Disability" also includes disability caused by  or  in  connection
    24  with Lyme disease (Lyme borreliosis) and other tick borne related patho-
    25  gens.
    26    § 7. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
    27  it  shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
    28  ment and/or repeal of any rules or regulations necessary for the  imple-
    29  mentation  of this act on its effective date is authorized to be made on
    30  or before such effective date.