What's happening
The Living Donor Protection Act of 2018 prohibits insurance discrimination against living organ or tissue donors and expands related protections and information.
Why it matters
Prohibits insurance discrimination against living organ or tissue donors. Insurers in New York would be barred from denying, limiting, or altering life or health insurance coverage, or charging higher premiums, solely because someone has donated an organ or tissue—unless there are additional, genuine actuarial risks.
Ensures insurance access for donors. The bill prevents insurers from using organ or tissue donation as a reason to deny, end, or restrict life or health insurance coverage, ensuring donors are not penalized for their altruism.
Expands family leave protections. The definition of “serious health condition” under the state’s workers’ compensation law is broadened to explicitly include the preparation for and recovery from organ or tissue donation surgery. This means living donors would qualify for family leave and related benefits during their recovery period.
Requires public information and education. State health authorities must develop and distribute, both online and in print, materials explaining the benefits of living donation, related insurance protections, tax benefits for donors, and all new donor rights under this law—helping potential donors make informed decisions.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Protect Living Organ Donors
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Substituted by S2496B
- Ordered to third reading rules cal.400
- Rules report cal.400
- Reported
- Reported referred to rules
- Reported referred to ways and means
- Reported referred to codes
- Print number 297c
- Amend and recommit to insurance
- Print number 297b
- Amend (t) and recommit to insurance
- Referred to insurance
Show 3 earlier actions
- Print number 297a
- Amend and recommit to insurance
- Referred to insurance
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Protect Living Organ Donors
Signed by Governor · Sponsor Kemp Hannon
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
297--C
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 5, 2017
Introduced by M. of A. GUNTHER, ORTIZ, TITONE, SIMON, GALEF, TAYLOR, CASTORINA -- read once and referred to the Committee on Insurance -committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee -- recommitted to the Committee on Insurance in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee -- again reported from said committee with amendments, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the public health law, the insurance law and the workers' compensation law, in relation to enacting the "living donor protection act of 2018"
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "living donor protection act of 2018".
§ 2. Section 4365 of the public health law is amended by adding a new subdivision 8 to read as follows:
8. The commissioner, in cooperation and consultation with the transplant council and other interested parties, shall develop and distribute, in printed form and on the department's internet website, informational materials relating to the live donation of organs and tissue, including, but not limited to:
(a) the benefits of live organ and tissue donation;
(b) the impact of the donation of organs or tissue on the donors' access to insurance and assistance;
(c) the reduction in federal adjusted gross income, for state personal income tax purposes, granted to living organ and tissue donors; and
(d) the protections and benefits granted pursuant to the living donor protection act of two thousand eighteen.
§ 3. The insurance law is amended by adding a new section 2616 to read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03670-08-8
A. 297--C 2
§ 2616. Discrimination because of status as a living organ or tissue donor. (a) No insurer or entity authorized to do the kinds of business specified in paragraph one or three of subsection (a) of section one thousand one hundred thirteen of this chapter shall decline to provide or limit coverage of an insured under any life or accident and health insurance policy or otherwise discriminate in the premium rating, offering, issuance, cancellation, amount of coverage or any other condition, based solely upon the status of an insured as a living organ or tissue donor and without additional actuarial risks.
(b) No insurer or entity authorized to do the kinds of business specified in paragraph one or three of subsection (a) of section one thousand one hundred thirteen of this chapter shall preclude an insured from donating all or part of an organ or tissue as a condition or receiving or continuing to receive life or accident and health insurance coverage.
(c) As used in this section, the terms "organ" and "tissue" shall have the same meanings as are provided therefor in section forty-three hundred sixty of the public health law.
§ 4. Section 4313 of the insurance law is amended by adding a new subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) Every such corporation shall be subject to the provisions of section two thousand six hundred sixteen of this chapter, relating to living organ and tissue donors.
§ 5. Subdivision 18 of section 201 of the workers' compensation law, as added by section 2 of part SS of chapter 54 of the laws of 2016, is amended to read as follows:
18. "Serious health condition" means an illness, injury, impairment, or physical or mental condition, including transplantation preparation and recovery from surgery related to organ or tissue donation, that involves inpatient care in a hospital, hospice, or residential health care facility, continuing treatment or continuing supervision by a health care provider. Continuing supervision by a health care provider includes a period of incapacity which is permanent or long term due to a condition for which treatment may not be effective where the family member is under the continuing supervision of, but need not be receiving active treatment by, a health care provider.
§ 6. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
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