Relates to patients interred at state mental health hospital cemeteries; directs the release of the name, birthdate and date of death of certain patients 50 years after the date of death.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
2514
2013-2014 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 18, 2013
___________
Introduced by Sen. ROBACH -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Mental Health and Develop-
mental Disabilities
AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to patients interred
at state mental health hospital cemeteries
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The mental hygiene law is amended by adding a new section
2 33.27 to read as follows:
3 § 33.27 Release of certain patients' names and dates of birth and death.
4 (a) To mark headstones or otherwise memorialize patients interred at
5 state mental health hospital cemeteries, the department of mental
6 hygiene shall make available the name, date of birth and date of death
7 of patients buried in state mental health hospital cemeteries fifty
8 years after the death of a patient.
9 (b) For the purposes of this section, the term "state mental health
10 hospitals" shall mean any state-funded institution to care for and help
11 treat the mentally ill or developmentally disabled in New York state.
12 Such term shall include, but not be limited to former asylums for the
13 insane, such as the New York State Lunatic Asylum, Utica State Hospital,
14 Willard Asylum for the Insane, Willard State Hospital, New York State
15 Inebriate Asylum, Binghamton Asylum for the Chronic Insane, Binghamton
16 State Hospital, Buffalo State Asylum for the Insane, New York State
17 Asylum for the Insane, Buffalo State Hospital, New York State Asylum for
18 Idiots and the Asylum for Idiots in Albany.
19 § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
20 it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amend-
21 ment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implemen-
22 tation of this act on its effective date is authorized to be made on or
23 before such date.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD07207-01-3
