What's happening
This bill allows certain non-citizen New York residents with end-stage renal disease to receive Medicaid coverage for kidney transplants.
Why it matters
Addresses a critical health gap for non-citizen residents. By extending Medicaid coverage to certain non-citizen New Yorkers with end-stage renal disease, the bill would provide life-saving kidney transplant access to a vulnerable population who otherwise might only receive emergency dialysis.
Targets long-term state residents with serious medical needs. Eligibility requires that the individual has received emergency dialysis in New York for at least two consecutive years, ensuring the benefit is limited to those with ongoing, established ties to the state and a sustained medical need.
May improve health outcomes and reduce long-term costs. Transplants are generally more cost-effective and offer a better quality of life than ongoing emergency dialysis, potentially reducing uncompensated care costs for hospitals and improving patient survival rates.
Sets a precedent for immigrant healthcare access. This policy could influence broader debates about healthcare rights and coverage for non-citizen residents, particularly those with chronic or life-threatening illnesses.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Fund Kidney Transplants for Immigrants
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
1 Co-sponsor
History
- Referred to health
- 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.
Cover Kidney Transplants for Immigrants
In Assembly Committee · Health · Sponsor Felix Ortiz
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
5722
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
May 13, 2019
Introduced by Sen. RIVERA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to authorizing the payment of medical assistance for the provision of kidney transplants for certain aliens
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 365-a of the social services law is amended by adding a new subdivision 10 to read as follows:
10. Notwithstanding the provisions of section one hundred thirty-one-k or any other provision of this article, medical assistance shall also include payment for surgery, medical care and prescription drugs related to kidney transplantation for aliens with end-stage renal disease who are otherwise eligible for benefits pursuant to this title. An alien shall only be deemed to be eligible pursuant to this subdivision if he or she has undergone emergency renal dialysis for a period of not less than two consecutive years within New York state, as proven by such means as shall be designated in the regulations of the commissioner of health.
§ 2. This act shall take effect on the first day of January next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law. 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 to be made and completed on or before such effective date.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD11485-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the social services law, in relation to authorizing the payment of medical assistance for the provision of kidney transplants for certain aliens
Purpose or general idea of bill
This bill amends the Social Services Law, with regard to expanding available public medical assistance for kidney transplantation to include undocumented persons in New York. Where current law provides that public assistance shall cover routine dialysis treatment for undoc- umented persons who experience chronic renal ailments, both fiscal and moral reasons justify expanding coverage to also include kidney trans- plants.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1 amends Section 365-a of the Social Services Law by adding a new subdivision 10, which would allow public medical assistance to include coverage of actual kidney transplant procedures, as well as medical aftercare services not limited to prescription drug coverage and follow-up visits to the doctor. The Section mandates that an undocu- mented person must undergo two years of emergency dialysis treatment in New York in order to qualify for public assistance for a kidney trans- plant. Finally, the Commissioner of Health is ordered to develop guide- lines (e.g., a database or receipt system) in order to verify the two year qualification period for a prospective kidney recipient receiving benefits under the subsection.
Read the full memo (603 words)
Section 2 sets forth the effective date of the legislation.
Justification
Currently in New York, public financial assistance is made available to undocumented persons seeking emergency medical care. Falling under this rubric, undocumented persons experiencing end-stage renal failure often undergo dialysis treatment on a biweekly basis at emergency facilities across the State. To date, Illinois is the only other jurisdiction extending this care to undocumented immigrants and New York has a shin- ing opportunity to proceed as a national leader on this issue. Beyond the moral reality that a kidney patient's quality of life, improves markedly following a transplant with the elimination of that patient's need for long dialysis procedures, the cost savings associated with this legislation are quite real. Whereas dialysis patients remain beholden to this expensive treatment for the remainder of their lives, kidney trans- plantation halts this routine expenditure by the State. While the upfront cost of a transplant is higher than the annual cost of dialysis, the State is poised to save money over time as the annual fees associ- ated with post-transplant medication are drastically lower than the price tag of dialysis. Further, to limit the State's public aid to persons residing in New York, this legislation requires an eligible person to demonstrate that they have already undergone two years of dialysis treatment covered by the State's existing public assistance programs.
Finally, in noting that New York ranks last out of the fifty states in terms of per capita registered organ donors, it is plausible to believe that expanding transplantation care to undocumented persons would encourage more donor enrollment in underserved communities. Pointedly, a family member may be more likely to enroll as a donor in a scenario where all relatives in need of a kidney transplant are able to obtain one within New York State.
Prior legislative history
2016: S. 6056-A (Peralta) 2017: S. 333 (Peralta)
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
TO BE DETERMINED.
Effective date
THIS ACT SHALL TAKE EFFECT ON THE FIRST DAY OF JANUARY NEXT SUCCEEDING THE DATE ON WHICH IT SHALL HAVE BECOME A LAW; 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 EFFEC- TIVE DATE IS AUTHORIZED AND DIRECTED TO BE MADE AND COMPLETED ON OR BEFORE SUCH EFFECTIVE DATE.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.