BILL NUMBER: S4713A
SPONSOR: FAHY
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to designating
records and information relating to a patient who has been deceased for
a period of fifty years or longer as historic records no longer subject
to privacy protections
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
This bill would remove privacy protections for records and information
pertaining to individuals deceased for fifty years or more.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends section 33.16 of the mental health law by stating that
records and information relating to a person who has been deceased for
fifty years or more shall be considered historic records and shall no
longer be considered confidential or subject to privacy protections.
Section 2 establishes the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Mental health records are a crucial resource for historians, research-
ers, genealogists, and descendants seeking to understand the experiences
of individuals who lived in state-operated psychiatric facilities.
However, current privacy laws indefinitely restrict access to such
records, even when there is no longer a reasonable expectation of priva-
cy due to the passage of time.
This bill balances the interests of privacy and the public good by
establishing a clear, 50-year threshold after which clinical records of
deceased individuals are reclassified as historic. Notably, this thresh-
old mirrors the revised federal HIPAA privacy rule, which permits the
disclosure of health information 50 years after an individual's death. A
number of states have adopted this standard into their own laws,
reflecting a growing national consensus that this is an appropriate
timeframe for preserving individual privacy while enabling historical
access.
Access to these records also supports important public discourse and
scientific understanding. For example, the availability of clinical
files from decades past can help demonstrate that conditions such as
autism have existed and been documented well before the modern diagnos-
tic era. This stands in direct opposition to the harmful and misleading
narrative-recently promoted by Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.-that
autism is a recent phenomenon caused solely by contemporary environ-
mental factors. Public access to historical records allows for a more
accurate and evidence-based understanding of mental health history,
diagnosis trends, and the evolution of psychiatric care.
By clarifying that confidentiality protections no longer apply after
this period, the bill enables institutions to respond to public requests
for information in a legally sound and administratively manageable way,
while explicitly stating that there is no new record retention require-
ment. It supports the preservation of history and family heritage while
maintaining respect for privacy and administrative capacity.
 
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ORIGINAL AND AMENDED VERSION:
This version removes privacy protections for the clinical records of
those deceased for fifty years or more, expanding access to the records
beyond direct descendants.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Effective immediately.

Statutes affected:
S4713: 33.16 mental hygiene law
S4713A: 33.13 mental hygiene law