What's happening
This bill requires the New York Health Commissioner to create a uniform color-coded patient safety wristband system in all healthcare facilities.
Why it matters
Standardizing color-coded wristbands for key patient safety risks (like allergies, fall risk, "do not resuscitate" orders, and elopement) could reduce confusion and prevent medical errors across all New York healthcare facilities.
Requiring all hospitals, nursing homes, and healthcare providers to use the same color codes will make it easier for staff—especially those who move between institutions—to quickly recognize and respond to patient needs.
The law’s inclusion of specific risks (like elopement, where a patient leaves a facility without authorization) means that vulnerable populations—such as people with dementia—will be more visibly protected, potentially reducing dangerous incidents.
By empowering the Health Commissioner to set the rules and consult with provider organizations, the system can be updated over time to keep up with best practices and emerging safety concerns.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Standardize Patient Safety System
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Referred to health
- Referred to health
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
24
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY (Prefiled)
January 4, 2017
Introduced by M. of A. CAHILL -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. BENEDET- TO, GALEF, GLICK, HOOPER, KOLB, LUPARDO, MONTESANO, SALADINO -- read once and referred to the Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to requiring the commissioner of health to develop and implement a system for uniform patient safety
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 25 to read as follows:
§ 25. Uniform patient safety. 1. The commissioner shall, in consultation with statewide organizations representative of providers of hospital and health-related services, develop and implement a system for color-coding standardization of medical safety conditions for use in all health care facilities. The commissioner shall, on or after July first, two thousand nineteen, develop such uniform patient safety conditions by standardizing the color-coding of patient wrist bands and providing hospitals, health care providers, residential health care facilities and nursing homes in this state with a patient standardization which is uniform in relation to health-related services. The commissioner shall establish and implement the uniformity of all patient safety through the promulgation of rules and regulations and further provide for the systematic and standard application of a color system to aid in the classification and identification of safety conditions including, but not limited to, a do not resuscitate order, allergies, fall risk of the patient, elopement and choking precautions.
2. For the purposes of this section, "elopement" means that a patient (a) has left the hospital, health care facility, residential health care facility or nursing home, or the company of staff, without authorization; or (b) has left the hospital, health care facility, residential
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01389-01-7
A. 24 2
health care facility or nursing home with authorization but has failed to return to such facility later than thirty minutes beyond the designated time.
§ 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019; provided, however, that effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized and directed to be made and completed on or before such effective date.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.