Enacts the "Steven Kovacs Law" to impose an affirmative duty upon a residential host to render assistance to a guest on private premises in the event of a medical emergency.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A3303B
SPONSOR: Abbate TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the general obligations law, in
relation to enacting the "Steven Kovacs Law" to impose an affirmative
duty upon a residential host to render assistance to a guest on private
premises in the event of a medical emergency
PURPOSE:
This legislation will requires a host to notify emergency responders
when they have actual knowledge of a medical emergency of a guest on the
host's private premises.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one cites the title of the bill as the "Steven Kovacs Law."
Section two defines a host as a person over eighteen years of age having
control over a private premises, and sets forth other relevant defi-
nitions of guest and private premises. Furthermore the bill imposes
liability over a host, who is present and has actual knowledge that a
guest on their private premises is suffering or has suffered a medical
emergency, for failing to give reasonable assistance, including notify-
ing an emergency responder.
Section three sets the enacting date on the sixtieth day after it shall
have become a law.
JUSTIFICATION:
Every year New Yorkers are seriously injured and many die as the result
of medical emergencies that go unreported to emergency responders who
could have rendered first-aid to those in need of such assistance. One
of the numerous cases that led to the need for this legislation is an
incident involving Steven Kovacs, a young man who was left to die in a
private residence following a social gathering. Mr. Kovacs' serious
medical state was known to the person in charge of the premises and yet
no emergency notification was made that could have provided Mr. Kovacs
with basic medical aid and possibly saved his life.
Unfortunately, the lack of any obligation to notify emergency responders
of a medical emergency once they become aware of such an emergency
results in countless avoidable deaths and serious injuries which could
have been prevented had such a notification been attempted. This act
shall affirm as a matter of public policy, the obligations of a residen-
tial host to simply notify emergency personnel in order to provide the
victim of such an emergency the best possible chance of surviving, as
one would expect any reasonable person to do. The mere act of notifica-
tion of emergency responders by the host or any other person at the
premises is a complete defense against any claim for damages.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
S. 7650-A (2012)
FISCAL IMPACT:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after becoming law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
3303--B
2013-2014 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 24, 2013
___________
Introduced by M. of A. ABBATE -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Judiciary -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted
as amended and recommitted to said committee -- recommitted to the
Committee on Judiciary in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 --
committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the general obligations law, in relation to enacting the
"Steven Kovacs Law" to impose an affirmative duty upon a residential
host to render assistance to a guest on private premises in the event
of a medical emergency
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Steven
2 Kovacs Law".
3 § 2. Article 9 of the general obligations law is amended by adding a
4 new title 2 to read as follows:
5 TITLE 2
6 SOCIAL HOST RESPONSIBILITY
7 Section 9-201. Social host responsibility.
8 § 9-201. Social host responsibility. 1. For the purposes of this
9 section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
10 (a) "Host" means any person over eighteen years of age having control
11 over a private premises.
12 (b) "Control" means the actual authority and ability to regulate,
13 direct or dominate the private premises.
14 (c) "Private premises" means any home, apartment, condominium, cooper-
15 ative unit or other dwelling unit of any kind, including yards and open
16 areas over which the host has control.
17 (d) "Guest" means a person who is physically present on the private
18 premises of a host, as an expressed invitee of the host.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05048-04-4
A. 3303--B 2
1 2. A host who is present and has expressly invited a guest to be pres-
2 ent upon the private premises over which the host exercises control, has
3 a duty to provide reasonable assistance to said invitee who is suffering
4 or has suffered a medical emergency which reasonably appears to threaten
5 the life of the guest. Upon failure to give reasonable assistance to
6 such guest after a request for such assistance, after having obtained
7 knowledge that such assistance was reasonably warranted, said host shall
8 be liable for damages for injuries sustained by such guest or for
9 damages for the death of such guest which occurred by reason of such
10 failure. Said duty shall be satisfied by obtaining or reasonably
11 attempting to obtain aid from law enforcement or medical personnel.
12 3. Notwithstanding subdivision two of this section, once a host at the
13 private premises has undertaken to render reasonable assistance to a
14 guest, it shall be a complete defense against any claim for damages
15 allegedly caused by acts or omissions of such person in rendering such
16 assistance, unless it is established that such injuries or death were
17 caused by gross negligence on the part of such person.
18 § 3. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall
19 have become a law.
