NY State Senate Bill 2023-S8924

Senate Bill S8924

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Requires the health equity council to issue mandates related to the treatment of sickle cell disease

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Health Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

Please enter your contact information

First Name

Last Name

Email Address

A valid email address is required.

Home address is used to determine the senate district in which you reside. Your support or opposition to this bill is then shared immediately with the senator who represents you.

Optional services from the NY State Senate:

Create an account. An account allows you to officially support or oppose key legislation, sign petitions with a single click, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Include a custom message for your Senator? (Optional)

Enter a message to your senator. Many New Yorkers use this to share the reasoning behind their support or opposition to the bill. Others might share a personal anecdote about how the bill would affect them or people they care about.

Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Mar 28, 2024	referred to health

2023-S8924 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Health
Law Section:: Public Health Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§243 & 206, Pub Health L
Versions Introduced in 2025-2026 Legislative Session:: S6029

2023-S8924 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Requires the health equity council to issue mandates related to the treatment of sickle cell disease; requires the commissioner of health to adhere to and act upon the recommendations and mandates of the health equity council.

2023-S8924 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S8924

SPONSOR: PARKER
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public health law, in relation to requiring the
health equity council to issue mandates related to the treatment of
sickle cell disease

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill requires the health equity council to issue mandates to the
commissioner of the health department for the establishment of regional
sickle cell centers; the implementation of workfOrce development in
primary and specialty care with a focus on sickle cell disease; and the
support of long-term surveillance of sickle cell disease complications,
mortality, health services utilization, and cost throughout the lifespan
of sickle cell disease patients.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends paragraph c of subdivision 6 of section 243 of the

public health law.

Section 2 amends subdivision 1 of section 206 of the public health law.

Section 3 sets forth the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The establishment of regional sickle cell disease (SCD) centers is a
critical step towards addressing the complex needs of individuals with
sickle cell disease. These centers will serve as hubs for team-based
integrated care, providing comprehensive services that are essential for
improving patient outcomes and quality of life. Sickle cell disease
patients require multifaceted care that addresses not only their phys-
ical symptoms but also their mental health needs.  Integrated care
centers can provide pain management, mental health services, trait test-
ing, and genetic counseling, ensuring a holistic approach to patient
care.

Sickle cell disease predominantly affects minority groups, who histor-
ically have had less access to comprehensive care. Establishing regional
centers is a step towards rectifying health disparities and promoting
equity in healthcare access and outcomes. By centralizing resources and
expertise, regional sickle cell centers can reduce the overall cost
burden on the healthcare system through more efficient management of
sickle cell disease.

There is a pressing need for specialized training in SCD care within
both primary and specialty care settings. By implementing workforce
development programs, healthcare professionals can be better equipped to
meet the unique challenges of treating SCD. The chronic nature of SCD
necessitates ongoing monitoring to track disease complications, mortal-
ity rates, health services utilization, and associated costs.  Long-term
surveillance will help identify at-risk populations and emerging trends,
enabling proactive and targeted interventions.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New Bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2023-S8924 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8924
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              March 28, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Health
 
 AN ACT to amend the public health law,  in  relation  to  requiring  the
   health  equity  council  to issue mandates related to the treatment of
   sickle cell disease
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Paragraph c of subdivision 6 of section 243 of the public
 health law, as added by chapter 684 of the laws of 2023, is  amended  to
 read as follows:
   c.  The  council  shall consider the feasibility of the following, AND
 NOTWITHSTANDING THE FINDINGS, SHALL ISSUE MANDATES TO  THE  COMMISSIONER
 FOR:
   (i)  the  establishment  of  a statewide public education and outreach
 campaign to publicize evidence  based  sickle  cell  disease  screening,
 detection  and  education  services. The campaign shall include: general
 community  education,  outreach  to  specific  underserved  populations,
 evidence  based  clinical sickle cell disease screening services, and an
 informational summary that shall include an explanation  of  the  impor-
 tance  of clinical examinations and what to expect during clinical exam-
 inations and sickle cell disease screening services;
   (ii) the provision of grants to approved organizations;
   (iii) the compilation of  data  concerning  sickle  cell  disease  and
 dissemination of such data to the public; [and]
   (iv)  the  development  of health care professional education programs
 including the benefits of early detection of  sickle  cell  disease  and
 clinical  examinations,  the  recommended frequency of clinical examina-
 tions and sickle cell disease  screening  services,  and  professionally
 recognized best practices guidelines;
   (V) THE ESTABLISHMENT OF REGIONAL SICKLE CELL CENTERS TO PROVIDE TEAM-
 BASED,  INTEGRATED  CARE INCLUDING PAIN MANAGEMENT, MENTAL HEALTH, TRAIT
 TESTING, AND GENETIC COUNSELING;
   (VI) THE  IMPLEMENTATION  OF  WORKFORCE  DEVELOPMENT  IN  PRIMARY  AND
 SPECIALTY CARE WITH A FOCUS ON SICKLE CELL DISEASE; AND
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD15055-01-4
 S. 8924                             2
 
   (VII)  THE  SUPPORT  OF  LONG-TERM SURVEILLANCE OF SICKLE CELL DISEASE
 COMPLICATIONS, MORTALITY, HEALTH SERVICES UTILIZATION, AND COST THROUGH-
 OUT THE LIFESPAN OF SICKLE CELL DISEASE  PATIENTS  TO  UNDERSTAND  WHICH
 POPULATIONS ARE MOST VULNERABLE AND IDENTIFY EMERGING TRENDS FOR ACTION.
   §  2. Subdivision 1 of section 206 of the public health law is amended
 by adding a new paragraph (w) to read as follows:
   (W) CONSIDER, ADHERE TO, AND ACT UPON ALL ADVICE, RECOMMENDATIONS  AND
 MANDATES  PROVIDED  BY THE HEALTH EQUITY COUNCIL PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION
 SIX OF SECTION TWO HUNDRED FORTY-THREE OF THIS CHAPTER.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.

Comments

Open Legislation is a forum for New York State legislation. All comments are subject to review and community moderation is encouraged.

Comments deemed off-topic, commercial, campaign-related, self-promotional; or that contain profanity, hate or toxic speech; or that link to sites outside of the nysenate.gov domain are not permitted, and will not be published. Attempts to intimidate and silence contributors or deliberately deceive the public, including excessive or extraneous posting/posts, or coordinated activity, are prohibited and may result in the temporary or permanent banning of the user. Comment moderation is generally performed Monday through Friday. By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and verify you are over 13.

Create an account. An account allows you to sign petitions with a single click, officially support or oppose key legislation, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.