What's happening
The bill authorizes Westchester Health Care Corporation to collaborate with other Hudson Valley health providers and exempts certain joint activities from antitrust laws.
Why it matters
Enables closer collaboration among regional health care providers. By allowing the Westchester Health Care Corporation to work jointly with hospitals and providers in eight Hudson Valley counties, the bill encourages coordinated efforts to improve health care delivery, which could lead to better patient outcomes and more efficient use of resources.
Protects specific collaborative activities from antitrust liability. The exemption from federal and state antitrust laws for select joint activities (like shared clinical standards, health IT, and joint purchasing) reduces legal risk for providers that want to partner, potentially fostering innovations and partnerships that would otherwise be stifled by competition laws.
Limits the scope of antitrust exemption to prevent abuse. The exemption is narrowly tailored, only applying to the specific activities listed (such as joint technology or purchasing) and explicitly excluding any actions that would improperly restrict labor market competition. This aims to balance the benefits of collaboration with protections against anti-competitive behavior that could harm workers or patients.
Targets improved care for underserved populations. By emphasizing service to residents who cannot pay for care, the bill seeks to ensure that expanded collaboration directly benefits vulnerable groups, not just the health systems themselves.
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Who cares
Westchester County Health Care Corporation
The bill would establish a state policy to shield its specified collaborations with health care providers in eight lower Hudson Valley counties from state and federal antitrust liability.
Health care providers and rural hospitals in the eight counties
The bill would cover collaboration on shared health information technology, clinical standards, service coordination and joint purchasing, including discussions with rural hospitals about integrating services.
Patients, including those unable to pay for care
The authorized collaborations would aim to improve access to care, quality of services and clinical outcomes.
Health care workers
The bill would expressly exclude activities that unlawfully restrict competitive labor markets from its antitrust protection.
Headline styles
Allow Hospital Network Contracts
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
11 Co-sponsors
1 Multi-sponsor
History
- Ordered to third reading cal.545
- Ordered to third reading rules cal.652
- Rules report cal.652
- Reported
- Reported referred to rules
- Print number 7719b
- Amend and recommit to ways and means
- Reported referred to ways and means
- Reported referred to codes
- Print number 7719a
- Amend and recommit to corporations, authorities and commissions
- Referred to corporations, authorities and commissions
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.
Let Hospital Form Health Network
In Senate Committee · Rules · Sponsor Terrence P. Murphy
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
7719--B
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
May 11, 2017
Introduced by M. of A. ABINANTI, GALEF -- read once and referred to the Committee on Corporations, Authorities and Commissions -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee -- reported and referred to the Committee on Codes -- reported and referred to the Committee on Ways and Means -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the public authorities law, in relation to authorizing the Westchester health care corporation to enter into agreements for the creation and operation of a health care delivery system network
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 3306 of the public authorities law is amended by adding a new subdivision 8 to read as follows:
8. As set forth in section thirty-three hundred one of this title, the creation and operation of the Westchester County Health Care Corporation is for the benefit of the residents of the state of New York and the county of Westchester, including persons in need of health care services without the ability to pay, and is a state, county, and public purpose. The corporation has advised that it intends to engage in certain collaborative activities with and limited to, health care providers in the eight lower Hudson valley counties of Westchester, Rockland, Dutchess, Orange, Ulster, Putnam, Sullivan, and Delaware, as set forth in section thirty-three hundred one of this title, for the purpose of promoting, and only to the extent necessary to promote, improved quality of and access to health care services and improved clinical outcomes, consisting of: (a) development of a non-exclusive joint health information technology platform; (b) development of a joint set of clinical quality standards; (c) coordination and integration of clinical service to reduce redundancy and increase efficiency; (d) joint discussions with rural hospitals regarding the possibility of coordinating and integrat-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02218-08-7
A. 7719--B 2
ing clinical services; and (e) joint purchasing of services, supplies and equipment related to the provisions of health care services. To promote improved quality of and access to health care services and improved clinical outcomes, and consistent with the corporation's furtherance of its health care purposes through the exercise of the special powers exercised pursuant to this section and the general powers exercised pursuant to this title, it is the policy of the state to supplant competition for the purpose of immunizing the planning and implementation of the enumerated activities by the corporation in collaboration with any one of the aforementioned entities from liability under the federal and state antitrust laws; provided, however, that nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to extend such declaration of policy to any activities other than those specifically enumerated and described in this subdivision, which remain subject to any and all applicable state and federal antitrust laws; and provided further that such declaration of policy shall not apply to any activities that improperly restrict competitive labor markets in violation of all applicable state and federal antitrust laws.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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.