STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 2135 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 23, 2023 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. EPSTEIN -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Health AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to requiring any health care practitioner who treats a child to provide the parent of such child with evidence-based information about certain immunizations The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph (f) of subdivision 2 of section 2995 of the 2 public health law, as added by chapter 505 of the laws of 2022, is 3 amended and two new paragraphs (h) and (i) are added to read as follows: 4 (f) "Health care practitioner" shall mean a physician, nurse practi- 5 tioner, [or] physician assistant or other health care practitioner 6 licensed or certified pursuant to title eight of the education law 7 acting within his or her lawful scope of practice. 8 (h) "Child" shall mean and include any person between the ages of two 9 months and eighteen years. 10 (i) "Person in parental relation to a child" shall mean and include 11 his or her father or mother, by birth or adoption, his or her legally 12 appointed guardian, or his or her custodian. A person shall be regarded 13 as the custodian of a child if he or she has assumed the charge and care 14 of the child because the parents or legally appointed guardian of the 15 minor have died, are imprisoned, are mentally ill, or have been commit- 16 ted to an institution, or because they have abandoned or deserted such 17 child or are living outside the state or their whereabouts are unknown, 18 or have designated the person pursuant to title fifteen-A of article 19 five of the general obligations law as a person in parental relation to 20 the child. 21 § 2. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 2997-f-2 22 to read as follows: 23 § 2997-f-2. Provision of information relating to immunization. 1. Any 24 health care practitioner who treats a child shall provide the person in EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD05998-01-3
A. 2135 2 1 parental relation to such child with the following written information: 2 current and evidence-based information about immunization against 3 poliomyelitis, mumps, measles, diphtheria, rubella, varicella, Haemophi- 4 lus influenzae type b (Hib), pertussis, tetanus, pneumococcal disease, 5 meningococcal disease, COVID-19, and hepatitis B that has been reviewed 6 by one or more accredited medical experts. 7 2. (a) The commissioner shall provide written information to health 8 care practitioners necessary to implement subdivision one of this 9 section, and shall post such information on the department's website. 10 (b) The commissioner shall ensure that such information is culturally 11 and linguistically appropriate for all recipients. 12 (c) Any local or national organization that provides education or 13 services related to immunization against poliomyelitis, mumps, measles, 14 diphtheria, rubella, varicella, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), 15 pertussis, tetanus, pneumococcal disease, meningococcal disease, COVID- 16 19, and hepatitis B may request that the commissioner include such 17 organization's informational material and contact information on the 18 department's website. Once such a request is made, the commissioner may 19 add the information to the department's website at his or her 20 discretion. 21 § 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall 22 have become a law.