Relates to treatment of domestic violence victims and documentation of injury and evidence; requires collection and storage of evidence and prohibits agencies from charging domestic violence victims.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
11107
IN ASSEMBLY
June 5, 2018
___________
Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Paulin) --
read once and referred to the Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law and the executive law, in relation
to treatment of domestic violence victims and documentation of injury
and evidence
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 2805-z to read as follows:
3 § 2805-z. Treatment of domestic violence victims and documentation of
4 injury and evidence. 1. Upon the request and consent of the patient,
5 every hospital providing treatment to alleged victims of domestic
6 violence shall be responsible for:
7 (a) providing documentation of domestic violence evidence, including
8 but not limited to the maintenance of domestic violence evidence and the
9 chain of custody as provided in subdivision two of this section;
10 (b) contacting a domestic violence assistance organization or shelter,
11 if any, providing domestic violence services and assistance to the
12 geographic area served by the hospital to establish the coordination of
13 non-medical services to domestic violence victims who request such coor-
14 dination and services; and
15 (c) ensuring that domestic violence victims are not billed for domes-
16 tic violence forensic exams and are notified orally and in writing of
17 the option to decline to provide private health insurance information
18 and have the office of victim services reimburse the hospital for the
19 exam pursuant to subdivision thirteen of section six hundred thirty-one
20 of the executive law.
21 2. Domestic violence evidence shall be collected and maintained as
22 follows:
23 (a) All domestic violence evidence, including but not limited to
24 photographic evidence, shall be provided to the alleged victim upon
25 their request. Upon the consent of the victim, all domestic violence
26 evidence, including photographic evidence, shall be kept in a locked,
27 separate and secure area for five years from the date of collection;
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD16027-01-8
A. 11107 2
1 provided that such evidence shall be transferred to a new location or
2 locations pursuant to this subdivision.
3 (b) Domestic violence evidence shall include, but not be limited to,
4 slides, cotton swabs, photographs, clothing and other items. Where
5 appropriate, such items shall be refrigerated and the cloths and swabs
6 shall be dried, stored in paper bags, and labeled. Each item of evidence
7 shall be marked and logged with a code number corresponding to the
8 alleged domestic violence victim's medical record.
9 (c) Upon collection, the hospital shall notify the alleged domestic
10 violence victim that, after five years, the domestic violence evidence
11 will be discarded in compliance with state and local health codes and
12 that the alleged domestic violence victim's clothes or personal effects
13 will be returned to the alleged domestic violence victim at any time
14 upon request. The alleged domestic violence victim shall be given the
15 option of providing contact information for purposes of receiving notice
16 of the planned destruction of such evidence after the expiration of the
17 five-year period.
18 3. Nothing within this section shall preclude the reporting hospital
19 from using the resources, procedures, or means of notification previous-
20 ly established under any other law with respect to the collection of
21 evidence that does not mitigate or abrogate any responsibilities herein.
22 4. Notwithstanding any provision of this section, where the person is
23 an alleged victim of a sexual assault or offense the hospital shall
24 treat and maintain evidence in accordance with section twenty-eight
25 hundred five-i of this article.
26 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 631 of the executive law, as amended by
27 section 22 of part A-1 of chapter 56 of the laws of 2010, is amended to
28 read as follows:
29 1. No award shall be made unless the office finds that (a) a crime was
30 committed, (b) such crime directly resulted in personal physical injury
31 to or the exacerbation of a preexisting disability, or condition, or
32 death of, the victim, and (c) criminal justice agency records show that
33 such crime was promptly reported to the proper authorities; and in no
34 case may an award be made where the criminal justice agency records show
35 that such report was made more than one week after the occurrence of
36 such crime unless the office, for good cause shown, finds the delay to
37 have been justified; provided, however, in cases involving an alleged
38 sex offense as contained in article one hundred thirty of the penal law
39 or incest as defined in section 255.25, 255.26 or 255.27 of the penal
40 law or labor trafficking as defined in section 135.35 of the penal law
41 or sex trafficking as defined in section 230.34 of the penal law or an
42 offense chargeable as a family offense as described in section eight
43 hundred twelve of the family court act or section 530.11 of the criminal
44 procedure law, the criminal justice agency report need only be made
45 within a reasonable time considering all the circumstances, including
46 the victim's physical, emotional and mental condition and family situ-
47 ation. For the purposes of this subdivision, "criminal justice agency"
48 shall include, but not be limited to, a police department, a district
49 attorney's office, and any other governmental agency having responsibil-
50 ity for the enforcement of the criminal laws of the state provided,
51 however, that in cases involving such sex offense a criminal justice
52 agency shall also mean a family court, a governmental agency responsible
53 for child and/or adult protective services pursuant to title six of
54 article six of the social services law and/or title one of article
55 nine-B of the social services law, and any medical facility established
56 under the laws of the state that provides a forensic physical examina-
A. 11107 3
1 tion for victims of rape and sexual assault or a forensic examination of
2 domestic violence victims pursuant to section twenty-eight hundred
3 five-z of the public health law.
4 § 3. Section 631 of the executive law is amended by adding a new
5 subdivision 19 to read as follows:
6 19. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule, or regulation to
7 the contrary, when any New York state accredited hospital, accredited
8 sexual assault examiner program, or licensed health care provider
9 furnishes services to any alleged domestic violence victim, including
10 but not limited to a forensic examination of domestic violence victims
11 pursuant to section twenty-eight hundred five-z of the public health law
12 in accordance with the domestic violence offense evidence collection
13 protocol and standards established by the department of health, such
14 hospital, sexual assault examiner program, or licensed health care
15 provider shall provide such services to the person without charge and
16 shall bill the office directly. The office, in consultation with the
17 department of health, shall define the specific services to be covered
18 by the domestic violence forensic exam reimbursement fee, which must
19 include at a minimum forensic examiner services, hospital or health care
20 facility services related to the exam, and related laboratory tests. The
21 office, in consultation with the department of health, shall also gener-
22 ate the necessary regulations and forms for the direct reimbursement
23 procedure. The rate for reimbursement shall be the amount of itemized
24 charges not exceeding eight hundred dollars, to be reviewed and adjusted
25 annually by the office in consultation with the department of health.
26 The hospital, sexual assault examiner program, or licensed health care
27 provider must accept this fee as payment in full for these specified
28 services. No additional billing of the victim for said services is
29 permissible. A domestic violence victim may voluntarily assign any
30 private insurance benefits to which he or she is entitled for the health
31 care forensic examination, in which case the hospital or health care
32 provider may not charge the office; provided, however, in the event the
33 domestic violence victim assigns any private health insurance benefit,
34 such coverage shall not be subject to annual deductibles or coinsurance
35 or balance billing by the hospital, sexual assault examiner program or
36 licensed health care provider. A hospital, sexual assault examiner
37 program or licensed health care provider shall, at the time of the
38 initial visit, request assignment of any private health insurance bene-
39 fits to which the domestic violence victim is entitled on a form
40 prescribed by the office; provided, however, such domestic violence
41 victim shall be advised orally and in writing that he or she may decline
42 to provide such information regarding private health insurance benefits
43 if he or she believes that the provision of such information would
44 substantially interfere with his or her personal privacy or safety and
45 in such event, the domestic violence forensic exam fee shall be paid by
46 the office. Such domestic violence victim shall also be advised that
47 providing such information may provide additional resources to pay for
48 services to other victims. If he or she declines to provide such health
49 insurance information, he or she shall indicate such decision on the
50 form provided by the hospital, sexual assault examiner program or
51 licensed health care provider, which form shall be prescribed by the
52 office.
53 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
