What's happening
The bill prohibits parties in personal injury or malpractice cases from conducting ex-parte interviews with another party's health care providers, except for the patient's own attorney.
Why it matters
Strengthens patient privacy. by explicitly preventing opposing parties or their representatives from having private (ex-parte) conversations with a patient’s health care providers, which guards sensitive medical information from being accessed without the patient’s knowledge or consent.
Limits potential for informal evidence gathering. by defense attorneys or insurance investigators, ensuring that any communication with a patient's health care provider in litigation must occur with notice and oversight, such as through formal discovery or depositions, making the process more transparent and equitable.
Empowers patients and their legal representatives. by granting only the patient’s own attorney (or their authorized agents) the right to conduct private interviews with treating providers, which may help ensure that the patient’s interests and privacy are prioritized in the litigation process.
Applies both retroactively and prospectively. to new and pending personal injury, malpractice, or wrongful death cases, potentially impacting ongoing litigation strategies and reinforcing privacy protections immediately after enactment.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Protect Patient Medical Privacy
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
History
- Referred to judiciary
- Referred to judiciary
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1215
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 9, 2025
Introduced by M. of A. DINOWITZ, WEPRIN, R. CARROLL, COLTON, JACOBSON, SIMON -- read once and referred to the Committee on Judiciary
AN ACT to amend the civil practice law and rules, in relation to enacting the "patient privacy protection act"
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 "patient privacy protection act".
§ 2. Section 3102 of the civil practice law and rules is amended by adding a new subdivision (c-1) to read as follows:
(c-1) Ex-parte interviews. In any action involving personal injury, medical, dental or podiatric malpractice, or wrongful death, no party or anyone acting on behalf of a party may either directly or indirectly conduct ex-parte interviews with the treating physicians or other health care providers of any other party. Nothing in this subdivision shall prohibit an attorney or the agent or employee of an attorney who represents the patient, the estate of the patient, or the natural or duly appointed guardian of the patient whose condition is at issue in the action from conducting ex-parte conversations with a treating physician or other health care provider of the patient.
§ 3. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall have become a law and shall apply to all actions involving personal injury, medical, dental or podiatric malpractice, or wrongful death filed on and after such date and to all such actions pending on such effective date except as to conduct prohibited by section two of this act which occurred prior to such effective date.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01729-01-5
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.