NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A9008
SPONSOR: Bichotte Hermelyn TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public health law and the state finance law, in
relation to establishing a public awareness campaign for maternal
depression; and making an appropriation therefor
PURPOSE:
This bill enacts the Infant Safety Act of 2021 and provides an appropri-
ation of $20 million to establish a public awareness campaign for mater-
nal depression.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill amends Article 25 of the public health law is
amended by adding a new title 7 entitled Maternal Depression, estab-
lishes Section 2593 Public Awareness Campaign for Maternal Depression
and provides that such campaign shall educate the public and maternal
health care providers about the risks and remedies associated with
maternal depression.
Section 2 amends the state finance law by adding a new section 97-pppp
that creates a maternal depression fund.
Section 3 appropriates the sum of 20 million dollars to the Department
of Health to support the Public Awareness Campaign for Maternal
Depression.
Section 4 provides that this act shall take effect immediately.
JUSTIFICATION:
Information obtained from the New York State Department of Health indi-
cates that 10-20% of new mothers suffer from maternal depression,
including periods of sadness, anxiety, fatigue and thoughts of death or
suicide. For more than 1 out of every 1,000 new mothers the maternal
depression they experience - also known as postpartum depression
includes more severe symptoms such as postpartum psychosis that can lead
to hallucinations and mania. A little diagnosed medical condition,
maternal depression is believed to have contributed to the deaths of
three infants who were allegedly killed by their mothers in separate
incidents that have taken place in New York City in recent years.
The enactment of the Infant Safety Act of 2015 will mark approval of the
first statewide program of its kind in New York's history and will
provide an unprecedented commitment of public resources to address this
serious public health issue.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: Assembly:
01/03/18 Referred to Health,
01/12/17 Referred to Health,
01/06/2016 Referred to Health,
12/02/15 Referred to Health
02/24/21 referred to health
01/05/22 referred to health
Senate: N/A
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
$20 million
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9008
IN ASSEMBLY
February 1, 2024
___________
Introduced by M. of A. BICHOTTE HERMELYN, ALVAREZ, DICKENS, REYES,
SLATER, SEAWRIGHT, ZACCARO -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. GUNTHER
-- read once and referred to the Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law and the state finance law, in
relation to establishing a public awareness campaign for maternal
depression; and making an appropriation therefor
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Article 25 of the public health law is amended by adding a
2 new title 7-a to read as follows:
3 TITLE VII-A
4 MATERNAL DEPRESSION
5 Section 2597. Public awareness campaign for maternal depression.
6 § 2597. Public awareness campaign for maternal depression. There is
7 hereby established within the department a maternal depression awareness
8 program to educate the public and maternal health care providers about
9 the risks and remedies associated with maternal depression.
10 § 2. The state finance law is amended by adding a new section 97-bbbbb
11 to read as follows:
12 § 97-bbbbb. Maternal depression fund. 1. There is hereby established
13 in the joint custody of the state comptroller and the commissioner of
14 taxation and finance a fund to be known as the "maternal depression
15 fund".
16 2. The fund shall consist of all monies appropriated for its purpose,
17 and all monies required by any provision of law to be paid into or cred-
18 ited to such fund. Nothing contained herein shall prevent the department
19 of health from receiving grants, gifts or bequests for the purposes of
20 the fund as defined in this section and depositing them into the fund
21 according to law.
22 3. Monies shall be payable from the fund on the audit and warrant of
23 the state comptroller on vouchers approved and certified by the commis-
24 sioner of health.
25 § 3. The sum of twenty million dollars ($20,000,000) is hereby appro-
26 priated to the department of health out of any moneys in the state trea-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05421-01-3
A. 9008 2
1 sury in the general fund to the credit of the state purposes account,
2 not otherwise appropriated, and made immediately available, for the
3 purpose of carrying out the provisions of this act. Such moneys shall be
4 payable on the audit and warrant of the comptroller on vouchers certi-
5 fied or approved by the commissioner of health in the manner prescribed
6 by law.
7 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
