What's happening
This bill repeals Article 29-B and expands existing public health law to govern do-not-resuscitate orders for patients in mental health facilities.
Why it matters
Unifies the legal process for do-not-resuscitate (DNR) orders across all hospitals, including those operated or licensed by the Office of Mental Health, by repealing a separate set of rules (Article 29-B) that previously governed mental hygiene facilities. This means the same standards and protections would apply to all patients, regardless of the type of facility, potentially reducing confusion and streamlining care.
Clarifies that patients with intellectual or developmental disabilities who are eligible for life-sustaining treatment decisions will still be governed by existing specific protections in the Surrogate’s Court Procedure Act. This ensures that vulnerable populations maintain established safeguards during medical decision-making.
Improves continuity of DNR orders when patients are transferred between hospitals or between mental health facilities and hospitals, by specifying that orders will remain valid and governed by the updated public health law. This reduces the risk of lapses or misunderstandings about a patient’s end-of-life wishes during transfers, improving patient-centered care.
May impact how mental health facilities train staff and communicate with families and surrogates, as they would now follow the same procedures for DNR orders as general hospitals. This could lead to operational changes and require updated guidance for facility administrators and clinicians.
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Who cares
Patients lacking decision-making capacity in mental hygiene hospitals
The bill would bring their do-not-resuscitate decisions under Public Health Law article 29-CC and repeal article 29-B’s separate framework.
Office of Mental Health-operated or licensed facilities and patient surrogates
The bill would place consent to nonhospital do-not-resuscitate orders under article 29-CCC rather than article 29-B.
People with intellectual or developmental disabilities eligible under section 1750-b
The bill would specify that their consent is governed by that section of the Surrogate’s Court Procedure Act.
Hospitals receiving patients with do-not-resuscitate orders
The bill would direct them to apply section 2994-l to orders accompanying patients admitted from nonhospital settings or transferred from another hospital.
Headline styles
Update DNR Orders in Hospitals
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Committed to rules
- Advanced to third reading
- 2nd report cal.
- 1st report cal.604
- Print number 5762a
- Amend and recommit to health
- 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.
Update DNR Rules for Hospitals
In Senate Committee · Health · Sponsor Aileen Gunther
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
5762--A
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
May 14, 2019
Introduced by Sen. RIVERA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health -- recommitted to the Committee on Health in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to orders not to resuscitate; and to repeal article 29-B of the public health law relating to orders not to resuscitate for residents of mental hygiene facilities
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Article 29-B of the public health law is REPEALED.
§ 2. Section 2994-b of the public health law is amended by adding a new subdivision 1-a to read as follows:
1-a. This article shall also apply to decisions regarding orders not to resuscitate for a patient who lacks decision-making capacity in a hospital as defined by section 1.03 of the mental hygiene law.
§ 3. Subdivision 5 of section 2994-cc of the public health law, as amended by chapter 430 of the laws of 2017, is amended to read as follows:
5. Consent by a patient or a surrogate for a patient [in a mental hygiene facility shall be governed by article twenty-nine-B of this chapter] in a facility operated or licensed by the office of mental health shall be governed by this article. Consent by a patient who is intellectually or otherwise developmentally disabled and is eligible for life-sustaining treatment decision pursuant to section seventeen hundred fifty-b of the surrogate's court procedure act shall be governed by that section.
§ 4. Subdivision 5 of section 2994-cc of the public health law, as amended by chapter 708 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01154-03-0
S. 5762--A 2
5. Consent by a patient or a surrogate for a patient [in a mental hygiene facility shall be governed by article twenty-nine-B of this chapter] in a facility operated or licensed by the office of mental health shall be governed by this article. Consent by a patient who is intellectually or otherwise developmentally disabled and is eligible for life-sustaining treatment decision pursuant to section seventeen hundred fifty-b of the surrogate's court procedure act shall be governed by that section.
§ 5. Section 2994-ff of the public health law, as added by chapter 8 of the laws of 2010, is amended to read as follows:
§ 2994-ff. Interinstitutional transfer. If a patient with a nonhospital order not to resuscitate is admitted to a hospital, or if a hospital patient with an order not to resuscitate is transferred from a hospital to a different hospital, the order shall be treated as an order not to resuscitate for a patient transferred from another hospital, and shall be governed by [article twenty-nine-CC of this chapter, except that any such order for a patient admitted to a mental hygiene facility shall be governed by article twenty-nine-B] section twenty-nine hundred ninetyfour-l of this chapter.
§ 6. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law; provided, however, that if chapter 708 of the laws of 2019 shall not have taken effect on or before such date then section four of this act shall take effect on the same date and in the same manner as such chapter of the laws of 2019 takes effect.
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 orders not to resuscitate; and to repeal article 29-B of the public health law relat- ing to orders not to resuscitate for residents of mental hygiene facili- ties
Purpose or general idea of bill
This is one of a series of seven bills, informally referred to as the "Surrogate Decision-Making Improvement Acts." The bills make technical/minor, clarifying and coordinating amendments and other improvements to the Family Health Care Decisions Act (FHCDA) (Ch. 8, Laws of 2010) and other laws that govern health care decisions, includ- ing life-sustaining treatment decisions, for patients who lack deci- sion-making capacity.
This bill repeals PHL Art. 29-B, Orders Not to Resuscitate for Patients in Mental Hygiene Facilities, which is now covered by other provisions of the Public Health Law.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1 repeals Public Health Law Article 29-B (do-not-resuscitate orders for patients in mental hygiene facilities).
Section 2 amends § 2994-b to add subdivision 1-a to make the FHCDA applicable to decisions regarding orders not to resuscitate for a patient in an OMH licensed psychiatric hospitals and psychiatric units of general hospitals.
Section 3 amends PHL § 2994-cc(5) to delete a reference to PHL Article 29-B. Section 4 amends PHL § 2994-ff to delete a reference to PHL Arti- cle 29-B. Section 5 sets forth the effective date: ninety days after it becomes a law.
Justification
This bill repeals PHL Art 29-B Orders Not To Resuscitate. For Residents of Mental Hygiene Facilities.
Prior to 2010, PHL Art. 29-B governed DNR orders in hospitals, nursing homes, mental hygiene facilities and elsewhere. Ch. 8, L. 2010 (i) replaced the DNR Law with the FHCDA in hospitals and nursing homes, (ii) amended PHL Art. 29-B to make it applicable only to residents of mental hygiene facilities, i.e., psychiatric hospitals, psychiatric units of general hospitals, and OPWDDoperated developmental centers, and (iii) created PHL Art. 29-CCC - Nonhospital Orders Not To Resuscitate, to cover all other settings.
It soon became clear that there is no need for a separate DNR law for residents of mental hygiene facilities. First, DNR orders for residents of OPWDD-operated developmental centers were already governed by SCPA § 1750-b, making PHL Art. 29-B redundant. Second, DNR orders in psychiat- ric hospitals and general hospital mental health units were more appro- priately governed by the provisions in the FHCDA. Moreover, variations in DNR procedures and standards especially between the procedures and standards in hospital medical units and hospital mental health units have become a source of confusion and complexity.
Accordingly, section 1 of this bill repeals PHL Art. 29-B. Related amendments in this bill provide that DNR decisions for patients in psychiatric hospitals and units are governed by the FHCDA and confirm that DNR decisions for all persons with developmental disabilities are governed by SCPA 1.750-b (§§ 2 - 4).
Prior legislative history
2015: S 4972 Referred to Health FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.