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A07667 Summary:

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A07667 Floor Votes:

A07667 Text:

 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                         7667--B
 
                               2013-2014 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                      May 29, 2013
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  M.  of  A. GOTTFRIED, McDONOUGH, RAIA, GALEF, GUNTHER --
          Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. CLARK -- read once and referred to  the
          Committee  on Health -- reported and referred to the Committee on Ways
          and Means -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted  as
          amended  and recommitted to said committee -- again reported from said

          committee with amendments, ordered reprinted as amended and  recommit-
          ted to said committee
 
        AN ACT to amend the public health law and the insurance law, in relation
          to  developing  a  maternal depression screening and referral plan for
          the state, and providing maternal depression education
 
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section  1.  The  public health law is amended by adding a new section
     2  2500-k to read as follows:
     3    § 2500-k. Maternal depression.  1.  Definitions.    As  used  in  this
     4  section:
     5    (a)  "Maternal depression" means a wide range of emotional and psycho-
     6  logical reactions a woman  may  experience  during  pregnancy  or  after

     7  childbirth.  These  reactions may include, but are not limited to, feel-
     8  ings of despair or extreme guilt, prolonged  sadness,  lack  of  energy,
     9  difficulty  concentrating,  fatigue,  extreme  changes  in appetite, and
    10  thoughts of suicide or of harming  the  baby.  Maternal  depression  may
    11  include prenatal depression, the "baby blues," postpartum depression, or
    12  postpartum psychosis-the severest form.
    13    (b)  "Maternal health care provider" means a physician, midwife, nurse
    14  practitioner, or physician assistant, or other health care  practitioner
    15  acting  within his or her lawful scope of practice, attending a pregnant
    16  woman or a woman up to one year after childbirth,  including  a  practi-

    17  tioner attending the woman's child up to one year after childbirth.
    18    2.  Maternal  depression screening. (a) The commissioner, in consulta-
    19  tion with the commissioner of mental health, shall  establish  evidence-
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01525-06-3
        A. 7667--B                          2
 
     1  based  guidelines  for maternal depression screening for use by maternal
     2  health care providers and pediatric primary care providers. In  develop-
     3  ing guidelines under this section, the commissioner and the commissioner
     4  of  mental health shall consult appropriate maternal health care provid-

     5  ers. Such guidelines shall include, but not be limited to:
     6    (i) the identification of suggested validated, evidence-based diagnos-
     7  tic tools to be used for maternal depression screening;
     8    (ii) the routine  employment  of  validated,  evidence-based  maternal
     9  depression  screening  tools  at  regular intervals during pregnancy and
    10  after childbirth; and
    11    (iii) an appropriate  referral  mechanism  for  patients  who  require
    12  further evaluation, services, or treatment.
    13    (b)  Maternal  depression  screening and referral may include communi-
    14  cation with the father of the child and other family members, as  appro-
    15  priate and consistent with patient confidentiality.

    16    3. Referrals for maternal depression treatment. The commissioner shall
    17  make available a list of providers for treatment of maternal depression,
    18  including  support groups and services provided by not-for-profit organ-
    19  izations.
    20    4. The commissioner shall make any regulations necessary to  implement
    21  this section.
    22    §  2. Subdivision 1 of section 207 of the public health law is amended
    23  by adding a new paragraph (i) to read as follows:
    24    (i) Maternal  depression,  including  education,  screening,  referral
    25  services, and possible options for treatment.
    26    §  3.  Subdivision  1  of  section 2803-j of the public health law, as
    27  amended by chapter 62 of the  laws  of  1996,  is  amended  to  read  as
    28  follows:

    29    1. The commissioner shall require that every hospital and birth center
    30  shall  prepare in printed or photocopied form and distribute at the time
    31  of pre-booking directly to each prospective maternity patient and,  upon
    32  request,  to  the  general public an informational leaflet. Such leaflet
    33  shall be designed by the commissioner  and  shall  contain  brief  defi-
    34  nitions  of  maternity  related procedures and practices as specified in
    35  subdivision two of this section and such other material as deemed appro-
    36  priate by the commissioner.  Hospitals and birth centers may also  elect
    37  to  distribute  additional explanatory material along with the maternity
    38  patients informational leaflet. The commissioner shall make the informa-
    39  tion leaflets available on the department's website.
    40    § 4. Subdivision 1-b of section 2803-j of the public  health  law,  as

    41  added by chapter 647 of the laws of 1997, is amended to read as follows:
    42    1-b. The informational leaflet shall also include information relating
    43  to  the  physical  and  mental  health  of  the  maternity patient after
    44  discharge from the hospital, including, but not limited to,  information
    45  about  maternal  and  post-partum  depression.  The  commissioner  shall
    46  perform a review of information on maternal and  post-partum  depression
    47  in  informational  leaflets,  in  collaboration with the commissioner of
    48  mental health, to evaluate the contents  for  addressing  all  forms  of
    49  maternal  and  post-partum  depression,  and  identifying  resources for
    50  obtaining help for the patients and their families. All  information  on

    51  maternal  and  post-partum depression in informational leaflets shall be
    52  made available to patients in the top six languages spoken in the state,
    53  other than English, according to the  latest  available  data  from  the
    54  United States Census Bureau.
        A. 7667--B                          3
 
     1    §  5.  Paragraph  (b) of subdivision 1 of section 2803-n of the public
     2  health law, as added by chapter 56 of the laws of 1996,  is  amended  to
     3  read as follows:
     4    (b)  Maternity  care shall also include, at minimum, parent education,
     5  assistance and training in breast or bottle feeding, education on mater-
     6  nal depression and maternal depression screening and referral,  and  the
     7  performance  of any necessary maternal and newborn clinical assessments.

     8  Notwithstanding this requirement, nothing in this paragraph is  intended
     9  to result in the hospital charging any amount for such services in addi-
    10  tion  to  the  applicable  charge  for  the maternity inpatient hospital
    11  admission.
    12    § 6. The insurance law is amended by adding a new  section  3217-g  to
    13  read as follows:
    14    §  3217-g. Maternal depression screenings.  No insurer subject to this
    15  article shall by contract, written policy or procedure limit  a  patient
    16  insured's   direct   access  to  screening  and  referral  for  maternal
    17  depression from a provider of  obstetrical,  gynecologic,  or  pediatric
    18  services.
    19    § 7. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
    20  it  shall  have  become a law; provided that (a) section six of this act

    21  shall apply to contracts entered into, amended or delivered on or  after
    22  the  first  of  January  after this act becomes a law; and (b) effective
    23  immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or  regu-
    24  lation  necessary  for  the  implementation of this act on its effective
    25  date is authorized and directed to be made and completed by the  commis-
    26  sioner of health on or before such effective date.