STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9779
IN SENATE
April 6, 2026
___________
Introduced by Sens. SEPULVEDA, SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered print-
ed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law and the New York city health and
hospitals corporation act, in relation to hospital community advisory
boards
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 2803-l of the public health law, as amended by
2 chapter 639 of the laws of 1996, is amended to read as follows:
3 § 2803-l. Community service plans and community advisory boards. 1.
4 The governing body of a [voluntary non-profit] general hospital, in
5 cooperation with the hospital's community advisory board established
6 under this section, must issue an organizational mission statement iden-
7 tifying at a minimum the populations and communities served by the
8 hospital and the hospital's commitment to meeting the health care needs
9 of the community.
10 2. The governing body, in cooperation with the hospital's community
11 advisory board established under this section must at least every three
12 years:
13 (i) review and amend as necessary the hospital mission statement;
14 (ii) solicit the views of the communities served by the hospital on
15 such issues as the hospital's performance and service priorities;
16 (iii) demonstrate the hospital's operational and financial commitment
17 to meeting community health care needs, to provide charity care services
18 and to improve access to health care services by the underserved; and
19 (iv) prepare and make available to the public a statement showing on a
20 combined basis a summary of the financial resources of the hospital and
21 related corporations and the allocation of available resources to hospi-
22 tal purposes including the provision of free or reduced charge services.
23 3. The governing body, in cooperation with the hospital's community
24 advisory board, must at least annually prepare and make available to the
25 public an implementation report regarding the hospital's performance in
26 meeting the health care needs of the community, providing charity care
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD07377-01-5
S. 9779 2
1 services, and improving access to health care services by the under-
2 served.
3 4. The governing body shall file with the commissioner its mission
4 statement, its annual implementation report, and at least every three
5 years a report detailing amendments to the statement and reflecting
6 changes in the hospital's operational and financial commitment to meet-
7 ing the health care needs of the community, providing charity care
8 services, and improving access to health care services by the under-
9 served. Each of these documents shall be made available to the public
10 by the hospital on its website and by the department on its website.
11 5. (i) Every general hospital shall establish a community advisory
12 board to consider and advise the hospital upon matters concerning the
13 development of any plans or programs of the hospital, and may establish
14 rules and regulations with respect to the community advisory board.
15 (ii) The members of the community advisory board shall be represen-
16 tatives of the community served by the hospital. The hospital shall file
17 with the commissioner, and from time to time update, an up-to-date list
18 of the members of the hospital's community advisory board, which shall
19 be made available to the public by the hospital on its website and shall
20 be made available to the public by the department on its website.
21 (iii) Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law, general,
22 special or local, no officer or employee of the state or of any civil
23 division thereof, shall be deemed to have forfeited or shall forfeit
24 such person's office or employment by reason of acceptance of membership
25 on the community advisory board. No member of the community advisory
26 board shall receive compensation or allowance for services rendered on
27 the community advisory board, except, however, that members of community
28 advisory boards may be reimbursed by the hospital for necessary expenses
29 incurred in relation to service on the community advisory board.
30 § 2. Subdivision 11 of section 4 of section 1 of chapter 1016 of the
31 laws of 1969, enacting the New York city health and hospitals corpo-
32 ration act, as amended by chapter 116 of the laws of 1978, is amended to
33 read as follows:
34 11. (i) The corporation shall establish a community advisory board for
35 each of its hospitals to consider and advise the corporation and the
36 hospital upon matters concerning the development of any plans or
37 programs of the corporation, and may establish rules and regulations
38 with respect to such boards.
39 (ii) The members of such advisory boards shall be representatives of
40 the community served by the hospital. The corporation shall file with
41 the commissioner, and from time to time update, an up-to-date list of
42 the members of each hospital's community advisory board, which shall be
43 made available to the public by the hospital on its website and by the
44 department of health on its website.
45 (iii) Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of law, general,
46 special or local, no officer or employee of the state or of any civil
47 division thereof, shall be deemed to have forfeited or shall forfeit
48 [his] such person's office or employment by reason of [his] acceptance
49 of membership on such community advisory board. No member of such board
50 shall receive compensation or allowance for services rendered on such
51 board, except, however, that members of community advisory boards may be
52 reimbursed for necessary expenses [up to and including twenty-five
53 dollars] during a calendar month by submitting a personal summary vouch-
54 er. Each community advisory board established under this subdivision
55 shall serve as the community advisory board for the respective hospital
56 under section 2803-1 of the public health law.
S. 9779 3
1 § 3. This act shall take effect two hundred seventy days after it
2 shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment
3 and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation
4 of this act on its effective date are authorized to be made and
5 completed on or before such effective date.
