What's happening
This bill allows collaborative health programs to address disparities and improve care for underserved populations in New York.
Why it matters
Promotes targeted interventions for specific health disparities. By explicitly listing conditions like diabetes, asthma, cancers, substance abuse, and geographic shortages of care, the bill ensures that collaborative programs focus on real, documented gaps in New York’s healthcare system.
Facilitates flexible, innovative care models. The bill allows for regulatory waivers and new payment methods (like bundled payments), enabling more adaptable and potentially cost-saving approaches for underserved communities.
Encourages workforce diversity and training. By supporting recruitment and training of professionals—including efforts to attract more minority members into medicine—the bill addresses both immediate care gaps and long-term systemic inequities in the healthcare workforce.
Expands opportunities for funding and collaboration. The act creates a framework for individual or collaborative applications for grants, and involves a wide range of stakeholders (hospitals, agencies, consumers, experts) in shaping these programs, increasing the likelihood of effective, tailored solutions.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Team Up to Fight Health Gaps
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to health
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.
Team Up on Health Disparities
In Assembly Committee · Health · Sponsor Crystal Peoples-Stokes
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
8656
IN SENATE
May 10, 2018
Introduced by Sen. HANNON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to collaborative models for addressing health care disparities
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 4 of section 2805-x of the public health law is amended by adding a new paragraph (d) to read as follows:
(d) Collaborative programs to address disparities in health care access or treatment, and/or conditions of higher prevalence, in certain populations, where such collaborative programs could provide and manage services in a more effective, person-centered and cost-efficient manner for reduction or elimination of such disparities.
(i) Such programs may target one or more disparate conditions, or areas of under-service, evidenced in defined populations, including but not be limited to:
(A) cardiovascular disease;
(B) hypertension;
(C) diabetes;
(D) obesity;
(E) asthma;
(F) sickle cell disease;
(G) breast, lung, prostate and colorectal cancers;
(H) geographic shortage of primary care, prenatal/obstetric care, specialty medical care, home health care, or culturally and linguistically compatible care;
(I) alcohol, tobacco, or substance abuse;
(J) post-traumatic stress disorder and other conditions more prevalent among veterans of the United States military services;
(K) attracting members of minority populations to the field and practice of medicine; and
(L) such other areas approved by the commissioner.
(ii) Collaborative hospital-home care-physician, and as applicable additional partner, models may include under such disparities programs:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05537-01-7
S. 8656 2
(A) service planning and design;
(B) recruitment of specialty personnel and/or specialty training of professionals or other direct care personnel (including physicians, home care and hospital staffs), patients and informal caregivers;
(C) continuing medical education and clinical training for physicians, follow-up evaluations, and supporting educational materials;
(D) use of evidenced-based approaches and/or best practices to treatment;
(E) reimbursement of uncovered services;
(F) bundled or other integrated payment methods to support the necessary, coordinated and cost-effective services;
(G) regulatory waivers to facilitate flexibility in provider collaboration and person-centered care;
(H) patient/family peer support and education;
(I) data collection, research and evaluation of efficacy; and/or
(J) other components or innovations satisfactory to the commissioner.
(iii) Nothing contained in this paragraph shall prevent a physician, physicians group, home care agency, or hospital from individually applying for said grant.
(iv) The commissioner shall consult with physicians, home care agencies, hospitals, consumers, statewide associations representative of such participants, and other experts in health care disparities, in developing an application process for grant funding or rate adjustment, and for request of state regulatory waivers, to facilitate implementation of disparities programs under this paragraph.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the public health law, in relation to collaborative models for addressing health care disparities
Purpose
To amend the Public Health Law, in relation to including among the initiatives authorized in the Public Health Law under the Hospital-Home Care-Physician Collaborative Program, programs to address disparities in health care access or treatment, and/or conditions of higher prevalence in certain populations, such as: racial and ethnic minority groups, persons with disabilities, women, the poor, persons living in rural and other medically unserved areas, and underserved geographic areas.
Summary of provisions
Section one of the bill would amend subdivision 4 of section 2805-x of the Public Health Law, Hospital-Home Care-Physician Collaborative Program, by adding a new paragraph (d), to authorize programs which address issues of health care access and/or treatment, which contribute to health disparities among certain populations within the State.
Section two of the bill establishes the effective date.
Justification
There are many definitions of health disparities. Healthy People 2020, a federal health promotion and disease prevention initiative, defines a health disparity as "a particular type of health difference that is closely linked with social, economic, and/or environmental disadvantage. Health disparities adversely affect groups of people who have systemat- ically experienced greater obstacles to health based on their racial or ethnic group; religion; socioeconomic status; gender; age; mental health; cognitive, sensory, or physical disability; sexual orientation or gender identity; geographic location; or other characteristics historically linked to discrimination or exclusion." By authorizing programs of collaboration targeted at health disparities between hospi- tals, home care agencies and physicians, this bill would encourage health care innovation designed to improve health outcomes for disadvan- taged persons and, reduce overall health care costs within the State.
Legislative history
New bill.
Fiscal implications
There are no fiscal impacts resulting from this bill. The bill would provide additional direction for an existing program to include health care disparities within its focus. Funding for the collaboration models comes from a combination of State appropriation, Federal waivers and the tobacco control and insurance initiative Health Care Reform Act (HCRA) pool, and would not be affected.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.