BILL NUMBER: S5744
SPONSOR: CLEARE
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public health law, in relation to increasing mone-
tary penalties for public health law violations and providing support
for the nursing home quality improvement demonstration program
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To update money penalties to better deter bad behavior and incentivize
the correction of violations by health facilities and providers.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Sections one and two amend PHL S 12 (1) and paragraph f of S. 309 (1) to
increase State and local health fines from the current $2,000 to $10,000
range per violation to $3,000 ($5,000 for nursing homes or general
hospitals) to $20,000; and deposit penalties garnered from nursing homes
into the nursing home quality improvement demonstration program.
Section three sets forth the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
PHL § 12 and 309 are the basic frameworks for money penalties relating
to violations of the PHL, where other monetary penalties are not specif-
ically written in statute. The $2,000 floor amount has not been updated
since 1990. The escalated amounts relating to repeat violations or
endangerment have not been updated since 2008. PHL money penalties are
outdated and nonthreatening, considered by too many as a "cost of doing
business." This bill will dedicate amounts garnered from actions against
nursing homes to quality improvement in other, deserving facilities.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2019-2020: A.4756 - reported to Codes Committee
2021-2022: A.232-C - passed Assembly/advanced to 3rd reading
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect Immediately; provided that the amendments to
subdivision 1 of section 12 of the public health law made by section one
of this act shall not affect the expiration of such subdivision and
shall be deemed to expire therewith.

Statutes affected:
S5744: 12 public health law, 12(1) public health law, 309 public health law, 309(1) public health law