Institutes a moratorium on the closure of hospitals until the department of health completes a comprehensive analysis and report on the impact of such closures on healthcare access in New York state.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A9819
SPONSOR: Wallace TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public health law, in relation to instituting a
moratorium on the closure of hospitals until the department of health
completes a comprehensive analysis of the impact of such closures on
healthcare access in New York state
PURPOSE:
This legislation is designed to halt the current wave of hospital
closures by implementing a statewide moratorium. The bill requires the
Department of Health to collect and evaluate detailed data on healthcare
facilities throughout New York State. This data will be used to identify
and address the specific needs of distressed healthcare facilities,
thereby safeguarding healthcare access statewide.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1: Provides the title of the bill as the "2024 Hospital Closure
Moratorium Act."
Section 2: Provides legislative findings and declares a public emergency
regarding hospital closures across New York State.
Section 3: Amends the public health law by adding a new section 2831,
which:
(1) Provides the definition of "healthcare facility" that will be used
in this section.
(2) Creates a moratorium on the closure of hospitals until the Depart-
ment of Health completes a statewide report on the aggregate impact of
the closure of hospitals.
(3) Sets out the requirements of the report concerning
a. statewide data, including the number of healthcare facilities, the
number of hospital beds, the average and number of Medicare and Medicaid
recipients, historical and projected market shares of all healthcare
providers, the median distance between providers, and
b. each healthcare facility, including patient demographics, the number
of Medicaid and Medicare recipients, the number of medical staff
employed, and transportation options for users of the facility.
(4) Requires the Department of Health to engage public health experts,
hospital labor representatives, community leaders, and New York State
residents when completing the report. The report must be distributed to
leaders in the legislature and posted publicly on the Department of
Health's website.
(5) Requires that the report be used to designate "distressed healthcare
zones," in which the Department of Health must reject any application
for closure by a healthcare facility and prioritize allocations of
healthcare spending.
Section 4: Provides that the bill shall take effect immediately and that
the commissioner of health and public health and the health planning
council shall make regulations and take other actions reasonably neces-
sary to implement the act.
JUSTIFICATION:
New York State is experiencing an undeclared healthcare emergency.
Currently, at least 12 hospitals in the state have filed applications
for closure, and 21 rural New York hospitals are at risk of immediate
closure. This trend threatens access to essential healthcare services
for millions of New Yorkers across the State and exacerbates existing
health disparities, disproportionately impacting the most vulnerable
populations in underserved areas.
In response to this urgent situation, this legislation imposes a morato-
rium on the closure of healthcare facilities, providing a crucial oppor-
tunity for the New York Department of Health to better understand this
crisis and intervene effectively. During this moratorium, the State
Department of Health will collect and analyze statewide data and data
from individual healthcare facilities to assess the current state of
healthcare in New York State and determine how further closures of
healthcare facilities might impact healthcare locally and statewide. By
examining factors such as geographic distribution, patient demographics,
financial viability, and quality of care, the Department of Health can
identify areas of need and develop targeted interventions to address
this ongoing healthcare emergency.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the State
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.
