Permits midwives and physician assistants to certify the cause of death on a fetal death certificate if they are in attendance at or after a fetal death.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A7390
SPONSOR: Gonzalez-Rojas TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public health law, in relation to certification of
fetal death certificates by a midwife or physician assistant
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To authorize a midwife or physician assistant in attendance at or after
a fetal death to certify the birth and cause of death on the fetal death
certificate.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:,:
Section 1 amends Public Health Law section 4161 to add midwives and
physician assistants to the statute governing which health care practi-
tioners may certify a fetal death on a fetal death certificate.
Section 2 is the effective date
JUSTIFICATION:
Current law authorizes only physicians and nurse practitioners in
attendance at a fetal death to certify the birth and cause of death on a
fetal death certificate, and it categorizes fetal deaths attended by
midwives as "deaths without medical attendance." This is inaccurate and
outdated. Since it is within the scope of practice of midwives and
physician assistants to attend births and fetal deaths, this bill adds
the two professions to the fetal death certification statute.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2022 (Gottfried): Reported to Health
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7390
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
May 19, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. GONZALEZ-ROJAS, REYES, FORREST -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to certification of
fetal death certificates by a midwife or physician assistant
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 4161 of the public health law, as amended by chap-
2 ter 436 of the laws of 1967, the section heading and subdivisions 2 and
3 3 as amended by chapter 153 of the laws of 2011, subdivisions 1 and 4 as
4 amended by chapter 352 of the laws of 2013, is amended to read as
5 follows:
6 § 4161. Fetal death certificates; form and content[; physicians, nurse
7 practitioners, midwives, and hospital administrators]. 1. The certif-
8 icate of fetal death and the report of fetal death shall contain such
9 information and be in such form as the commissioner may prescribe;
10 provided however that commencing on or after the implementation date
11 under section forty-one hundred forty-eight of this article, information
12 and signatures required by this subdivision shall be obtained and made
13 in accordance with section forty-one hundred forty-eight of this arti-
14 cle, except that unless requested by the woman neither the certificate
15 nor the report of fetal death shall contain the name of the woman, her
16 social security number or any other information which would permit her
17 to be identified except as provided in this subdivision. The report
18 shall state that a certificate of fetal death was filed with the commis-
19 sioner and the date of such filing. The commissioner shall develop a
20 unique, confidential identifier to be used on the certificate of fetal
21 death to be used in connection with the exercise of the commissioner's
22 authority to monitor the quality of care provided by any individual or
23 entity licensed to perform an abortion in this state and to permit coor-
24 dination of data concerning the medical history of the woman for
25 purposes of conducting surveillance scientific studies and research
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06158-01-3
A. 7390 2
1 pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (j) of subdivision one of
2 section two hundred six of this chapter.
3 2. In each case where a physician [or], nurse practitioner, midwife,
4 or physician assistant was in attendance at or after a fetal death, it
5 is the duty of such [physician or nurse] practitioner to certify to the
6 birth and to the cause of death on the fetal death certificate. [Where a
7 nurse-midwife was in attendance at a fetal death it is the duty of such
8 nurse-midwife to certify to the birth but, he or she shall not certify
9 to the cause of death on the fetal death certificate.]
10 3. Fetal deaths occurring without the attendance of a [physician or
11 nurse] practitioner as provided in subdivision two of this section shall
12 be treated as deaths without medical attendance, as provided in this
13 article.
14 4. When a fetal death occurs in a hospital, except in those cases
15 where certificates are issued by coroners or medical examiners, the
16 person in charge of such hospital or his or her designated represen-
17 tative shall promptly present the certificate to the physician [or],
18 nurse practitioner, midwife, or physician assistant in attendance, or a
19 physician [or], nurse practitioner, midwife, or physician assistant
20 acting in his or her behalf, who shall promptly certify to the facts of
21 birth and of fetal death, provide the medical information required by
22 the certificate, sign the medical certificate of birth and death, and
23 thereupon return such certificate to such person, so that the seventy-
24 two hour registration time limit prescribed in section four thousand one
25 hundred sixty of this title can be met; provided, however that commenc-
26 ing on or after the implementation date under section forty-one hundred
27 forty-eight of this article, information and signatures required by this
28 subdivision shall be obtained and made in accordance with section
29 forty-one hundred forty-eight of this article.
30 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
