NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A6314
SPONSOR: Dinowitz TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public health law, in relation to creating an educa-
tional pamphlet regarding the importance of prostate-specific antigen
testing
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
Creates an educational program regarding the importance of prostate-spe-
cific antigen testing.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one of the bill amends section 2404-a of the public health law
to require the Commissioner of Health to develop an educational pamphlet
relating to prostate cancer. The pamphlet shall include information on
prostate-specific antigen testing, be written in layperson's language,
and be made available in English and the six most common non-English
languages in New. York State. The pamphlet will be offered without
charge to healthcare providers and practitioners providing services to
adult men with a prostate.
Section two provides the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
According to the American Cancer Society, prostate cancer is the second
leading cause of cancer in men, with an estimated 288,300 new cases for
2023. Lack of awareness and stigma contribute to patients' reduced
participation in screening for prostate cancer. Furthermore, recent
research by Leszczynski et.. al. (2022) suggests that COVID-19 has nega-
tively impacted the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer, contrib-
uting to a rise in new cases since the pandemic started. This will be
particularly impactful in communities of African descent (where black
men are 70% more likely to develop prostate cancer and more than twice
as likely to die from it), communities of Indigenous and Hispanic
descent (where American Indian, Alaska Native and Hispanic men are twice
as likely to develop prostate cancer), and communities of Asian
descent(where Asian American and Pacific Islanders are three times as
likely to develop prostate cancer), as reported by CA A Journal for
Clinicians and the National Institute for Cancer. The creation and
distribution of educational materials related to prostate-specific anti-
gen screening can combat these factors by allowing patients to make
informed decisions regarding their health, which can also save them mon
ey over the long term.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become law.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6314
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
April 3, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. DINOWITZ -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to creating an educa-
tional pamphlet regarding the importance of prostate-specific antigen
testing
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 2404-a of the public health law, as amended by
2 chapter 335 of the laws of 2018, is amended to read as follows:
3 § 2404-a. Prostate cancer; duty to inform; educational pamphlet. 1.
4 The commissioner shall develop [a standardized written summary] an
5 educational pamphlet, in plain non-technical language, which shall
6 explain the following:
7 (a) the symptoms and risk factors for prostate cancer;
8 (b) the available methods for the detection and diagnosis of prostate
9 cancer, including information on the relative accuracy of the available
10 detection and diagnostic techniques, including, but not limited to,
11 prostate-specific antigen testing;
12 (c) the availability of insurance coverage for diagnostic screening
13 for prostate cancer without cost sharing pursuant to subparagraph (B) of
14 paragraph eleven-a of subsection (i) of section three thousand two
15 hundred sixteen, subparagraph (B) of paragraph eleven-a of subsection
16 (1) of section three thousand two hundred twenty-one and paragraph two
17 of subsection (z-1) of section four thousand three hundred three of the
18 insurance law; and
19 (d) the alternative medically viable methods of treating prostate
20 cancer, including but not limited to hormonal, radiological, chemothera-
21 peutic or surgical treatments, or combinations thereof. The [summary]
22 educational pamphlet shall contain information on prostate post-treat-
23 ment risks and other pertinent information to aid a person in deciding a
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD07206-03-3
A. 6314 2
1 course of treatment. The [summary] educational pamphlet shall be updated
2 as is necessary.
3 2. The [summary] educational pamphlet shall be provided to any health
4 care provider or practitioner providing medical treatment to adult men
5 with a prostate without charge or fee for distribution in accordance
6 with subdivision three of this section.
7 3. The [standardized written summary] educational pamphlet provided
8 for by subdivision one of this section may be provided by a health care
9 provider to [each person] adult men with a prostate under his or her
10 care [who]. Health care providers may provide to and discuss with each
11 adult man with a prostate under his or her care the educational pamphlet
12 where such adult man with a prostate is or may be at risk for prostate
13 cancer or who has been diagnosed to be afflicted with prostate cancer
14 upon said diagnosis, or as soon thereafter as practicable. The informa-
15 tional pamphlet shall be written in layperson's language and shall be
16 made available in English and the six most common non-English languages
17 spoken by individuals with limited English proficiency in New York state
18 as based on the most recent census.
19 4. Nothing in this section shall be construed to create a cause of
20 action for lack of informed consent in any instance in which such cause
21 of action would be limited by section twenty-eight hundred five-d of
22 this chapter.
23 [5. The commissioner shall have the written summary, required by this
24 section, completed and prepared for distribution on or before January
25 first, nineteen hundred ninety-eight.]
26 § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
27 have become a law.
