STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
2331
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 15, 2009
___________
Introduced by M. of A. REILICH -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Health
AN ACT to amend the social services law and the public health law, in
relation to criminal history records of maintenance employees in adult
residential health and assisted living facilities
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The social services law is amended by adding a new section
2 461-s to read as follows:
3 § 461-s. Access to criminal history records. 1. For the purposes of
4 this section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
5 (a) "Maintenance employee" shall mean any individual to be employed or
6 used by a provider, including those persons employed through a temporary
7 employment or staffing agency, and who provide supportive maintenance
8 services to such facility, included, but not limited to beautician,
9 security, janitorial, laundry, recreational and groundskeeping services.
10 Such term shall not include volunteers.
11 (b) "Provider" shall mean an assisted living facility, residential
12 health care facility, skilled nursing facility or any other type of
13 facility that provides residential or institutional care to the elderly
14 or disabled.
15 2. Subject to the rules and regulations of the division of criminal
16 justice services, the department of health shall have access to criminal
17 history records maintained by such division pertaining to any mainte-
18 nance employee or such persons as the department of health at any time
19 deems necessary to determine their criminal histories.
20 3. Every court in which a maintenance employee of a provider is
21 convicted of a crime while performing their intended duties at such
22 facility shall, within seven days after either the entry of a plea of
23 guilty, or the verdict of the court or a jury, notify the department of
24 health in writing of such conviction. The department of health, after
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04409-01-9
A. 2331 2
1 receipt of such notification or at any time the department of health
2 becomes aware of the conviction of such maintenance worker, shall have
3 the authority, granted pursuant to subdivision one of this section, to
4 have access to the criminal history records of such individual.
5 4. Any request for criminal history records made pursuant to the
6 provisions of this section shall be accompanied by the fingerprints of
7 the person who is the subject of such request.
8 § 2. Subdivisions 3 and 5 of section 2899 of the public health law, as
9 amended by chapter 331 of the laws of 2006, are amended to read as
10 follows:
11 3. "Employee" shall mean any person to be employed or used by a
12 provider, including those persons employed by a temporary employment
13 agency, to provide direct care or supervision to patients or residents
14 or an individual who serves as a maintenance employee as defined in
15 section four hundred sixty-one-s of the social services law. Persons
16 licensed pursuant to title eight of the education law or article twen-
17 ty-eight-D of this chapter are excluded from the meaning of employee
18 under this article. Such term shall not include volunteers.
19 5. "Prospective employee" shall mean any individual, including a
20 potential maintenance employee, not currently an employee, who files an
21 application for employment as an employee with a provider and the
22 provider has a reasonable expectation to hire such individual as an
23 employee.
24 § 3. Subdivision 10 of section 2899-a of the public health law, as
25 amended by chapter 331 of the laws of 2006, is amended to read as
26 follows:
27 10. Notwithstanding subdivision eleven of section eight hundred
28 forty-five-b of the executive law, a certified home health agency,
29 licensed home care services agency or long term home health care program
30 certified, licensed or approved under article thirty-six of this chapter
31 or a home care services agency exempt from certification or licensure
32 under article thirty-six of this chapter, or an assisted living facility
33 licensed under article forty-six-B of this chapter may temporarily
34 approve a prospective employee while the results of the criminal history
35 information check and the determination are pending, upon the condition
36 that the provider conducts appropriate direct observation and evaluation
37 of the temporary employee, while he or she is temporarily employed, and
38 the care recipient. The results of such observations shall be documented
39 in the temporary employee's personnel file and shall be maintained. For
40 purposes of providing such appropriate direct observation and evalu-
41 ation, the provider shall utilize an individual employed by such provid-
42 er with a minimum of one year's experience working in an agency certi-
43 fied, licensed or approved under article thirty-six of this chapter. If
44 the temporary employee is working under contract with another provider
45 certified, licensed or approved under article thirty-six of this chapter
46 or article forty-six-B of this chapter, such contract provider's appro-
47 priate direct observation and evaluation of the temporary employee,
48 shall be considered sufficient for the purposes of complying with this
49 subdivision.
50 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
