Relates to prohibiting insurance companies from requiring an individual to disclose if such individual has been diagnosed with an HIV infection or HIV-related illness or require such individual to submit to an HIV-related test prior to issuing or renewing a life insurance policy for such individual.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6031
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
March 4, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sen. PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Insurance
AN ACT to amend the insurance law, in relation to prohibiting insurance
companies from requiring individuals to disclose if such individual
has been diagnosed with an HIV infection prior to issuing life insur-
ance
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Paragraphs 2 and 4 of subsection (a) of section 4224 of the
2 insurance law, paragraph 2 as amended by chapter 713 of the laws of 1994
3 and paragraph 4 as amended by chapter 13 of the laws of 2002 and as
4 renumbered by chapter 126 of the laws of 2024, are amended and a new
5 paragraph 5 is added to read as follows:
6 (2) refuse to insure, refuse to continue to insure or limit the
7 amount, extent or kind of coverage available to an individual, or charge
8 a different rate for the same coverage solely because of the physical or
9 mental disability, impairment or disease, or prior history thereof, of
10 the insured or potential insured, except where the refusal, limitation
11 or rate differential is permitted by law or regulation and is based on
12 sound actuarial principles or is related to actual or reasonably antic-
13 ipated experience, in which case the insurer[, subject to the limita-
14 tions contained in section twenty-six hundred eleven of this chapter,]
15 shall notify the insured or potential insured of the right to receive,
16 or to designate a medical professional to receive, the specific reason
17 or reasons for such refusal, limitation or rate differential;
18 (4) knowingly permit, and no agent thereof and no licensed insurance
19 broker shall offer to make or make, any policy of life insurance or
20 annuity contract or agreement as to such policy or contract other than
21 as plainly expressed in the policy or contract[.];
22 (5) require an individual to disclose if such individual has been
23 diagnosed with an HIV infection or HIV-related illness or require such
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10640-01-5
S. 6031 2
1 individual to submit to an HIV-related test, pursuant to section twen-
2 ty-six hundred eleven of this chapter, prior to issuing or renewing a
3 life insurance policy for such individual. As used in this paragraph,
4 the following terms shall have the following meanings: (i) "HIV
5 infection" shall mean an infection with the human immunodeficiency virus
6 or any other related virus identified as a probable causative agent of
7 AIDS, (ii) "HIV-related test" shall mean any laboratory test or series
8 of tests for any virus, antibody, antigen or etiologic agent whatsoever
9 thought to cause or to indicate the presence of AIDS, and (iii) "AIDS"
10 shall mean an acquired immune deficiency syndrome, as may be defined
11 from time to time by the centers for disease control of the United
12 States public health service.
13 § 2. Section 2611 of the insurance law is amended by adding a new
14 subsection (c-1) to read as follows:
15 (c-1) No insurer or its designee shall request or require an individ-
16 ual proposed for life insurance coverage to be the subject of an HIV-re-
17 lated test prior to issuing or renewing a life insurance policy for such
18 individual.
19 § 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
20 have become a law.
