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
________________________________________________________________________
1351
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 14, 2019
___________
Introduced by Sens. SERINO, AKSHAR, AMEDORE, FUNKE, RANZENHOFER, ROBACH,
SEWARD -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be
committed 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,
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01666-01-9
S. 1351 2
1 separate and secure area for five years from the date of collection;
2 provided that such evidence shall be transferred to a new location or
3 locations pursuant to this subdivision.
4 (b) Domestic violence evidence shall include, but not be limited to,
5 slides, cotton swabs, photographs, clothing and other items. Where
6 appropriate, such items shall be refrigerated and the cloths and swabs
7 shall be dried, stored in paper bags, and labeled. Each item of evidence
8 shall be marked and logged with a code number corresponding to the
9 alleged domestic violence victim's medical record.
10 (c) Upon collection, the hospital shall notify the alleged domestic
11 violence victim that, after five years, the domestic violence evidence
12 will be discarded in compliance with state and local health codes and
13 that the alleged domestic violence victim's clothes or personal effects
14 will be returned to the alleged domestic violence victim at any time
15 upon request. The alleged domestic violence victim shall be given the
16 option of providing contact information for purposes of receiving notice
17 of the planned destruction of such evidence after the expiration of the
18 five-year period.
19 3. Nothing within this section shall preclude the reporting hospital
20 from using the resources, procedures, or means of notification previous-
21 ly established under any other law with respect to the collection of
22 evidence that does not mitigate or abrogate any responsibilities herein.
23 4. Notwithstanding any provision of this section, where the person is
24 an alleged victim of a sexual assault or offense the hospital shall
25 treat and maintain evidence in accordance with section twenty-eight
26 hundred five-i of this article.
27 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 631 of the executive law, as separately
28 amended by chapters 189 and 295 of the laws of 2018, is amended to read
29 as follows:
30 1. No award shall be made unless the office finds that (a) a crime was
31 committed, (b) such crime directly resulted in personal physical injury
32 to or the exacerbation of a preexisting disability, or condition, or
33 death of, the victim, and (c) criminal justice agency records show that
34 such crime was promptly reported to the proper authorities; and in no
35 case may an award be made where the criminal justice agency records show
36 that such report was made more than one week after the occurrence of
37 such crime unless the office, for good cause shown, finds the delay to
38 have been justified. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this
39 subdivision, in cases involving an alleged sex offense as contained in
40 article one hundred thirty of the penal law or incest as defined in
41 section 255.25, 255.26 or 255.27 of the penal law or labor trafficking
42 as defined in section 135.35 of the penal law or sex trafficking as
43 defined in sections 230.34 and 230.34-a of the penal law or an offense
44 chargeable as a family offense as described in section eight hundred
45 twelve of the family court act or section 530.11 of the criminal proce-
46 dure law, the criminal justice agency report need only be made within a
47 reasonable time considering all the circumstances, including the
48 victim's physical, emotional and mental condition and family situation.
49 For the purposes of this subdivision, "criminal justice agency" shall
50 include, but not be limited to, a police department, a district attor-
51 ney's office, and any other governmental agency having responsibility
52 for the enforcement of the criminal laws of the state provided, however,
53 that in cases involving such sex offense or family offense a criminal
54 justice agency shall also mean a family court, a governmental agency
55 responsible for child and/or adult protective services pursuant to title
56 six of article six of the social services law and/or title one of arti-
S. 1351 3
1 cle nine-B of the social services law, and any medical facility estab-
2 lished under the laws of the state that provides a forensic physical
3 examination for victims of rape and sexual assault or a forensic exam-
4 ination of domestic violence victims pursuant to section twenty-eight
5 hundred five-z of the public health law.
6 § 3. Section 631 of the executive law is amended by adding a new
7 subdivision 19 to read as follows:
8 19. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule, or regulation to
9 the contrary, when any New York state accredited hospital, accredited
10 sexual assault examiner program, or licensed health care provider
11 furnishes services to any alleged domestic violence victim, including
12 but not limited to a forensic examination of domestic violence victims
13 pursuant to section twenty-eight hundred five-z of the public health law
14 in accordance with the domestic violence offense evidence collection
15 protocol and standards established by the department of health, such
16 hospital, sexual assault examiner program, or licensed health care
17 provider shall provide such services to the person without charge and
18 shall bill the office directly. The office, in consultation with the
19 department of health, shall define the specific services to be covered
20 by the domestic violence forensic exam reimbursement fee, which must
21 include at a minimum forensic examiner services, hospital or health care
22 facility services related to the exam, and related laboratory tests. The
23 office, in consultation with the department of health, shall also gener-
24 ate the necessary regulations and forms for the direct reimbursement
25 procedure. The rate for reimbursement shall be the amount of itemized
26 charges not exceeding eight hundred dollars, to be reviewed and adjusted
27 annually by the office in consultation with the department of health.
28 The hospital, sexual assault examiner program, or licensed health care
29 provider must accept this fee as payment in full for these specified
30 services. No additional billing of the victim for said services is
31 permissible. A domestic violence victim may voluntarily assign any
32 private insurance benefits to which he or she is entitled for the health
33 care forensic examination, in which case the hospital or health care
34 provider may not charge the office; provided, however, in the event the
35 domestic violence victim assigns any private health insurance benefit,
36 such coverage shall not be subject to annual deductibles or coinsurance
37 or balance billing by the hospital, sexual assault examiner program or
38 licensed health care provider. A hospital, sexual assault examiner
39 program or licensed health care provider shall, at the time of the
40 initial visit, request assignment of any private health insurance bene-
41 fits to which the domestic violence victim is entitled on a form
42 prescribed by the office; provided, however, such domestic violence
43 victim shall be advised orally and in writing that he or she may decline
44 to provide such information regarding private health insurance benefits
45 if he or she believes that the provision of such information would
46 substantially interfere with his or her personal privacy or safety and
47 in such event, the domestic violence forensic exam fee shall be paid by
48 the office. Such domestic violence victim shall also be advised that
49 providing such information may provide additional resources to pay for
50 services to other victims. If he or she declines to provide such health
51 insurance information, he or she shall indicate such decision on the
52 form provided by the hospital, sexual assault examiner program or
53 licensed health care provider, which form shall be prescribed by the
54 office.
55 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.