2013 New York Consolidated Laws
PBH - Public Health
Article 27-F - (2780 - 2787) HIV AND AIDS RELATED INFORMATION
2780 - Definitions.

 
    §  2780.  Definitions.  As  used  in this article, the following terms
  shall have the following meanings:
    1. "AIDS" means acquired immune deficiency syndrome, as may be defined
  from time to time by the centers  for  disease  control  of  the  United
  States public health service.
    2.  "HIV  infection"  means  infection with the human immunodeficiency
  virus or any other related virus  identified  as  a  probable  causative
  agent of AIDS.
    3. "HIV related illness" means any illness that may result from or may
  be associated with HIV infection.
    4.  "HIV  related  test  or  HIV related testing" means any laboratory
  test, tests or series of tests approved for the diagnosis of HIV.
    4-a. "Rapid HIV test or testing" means any laboratory  screening  test
  or  tests approved for detecting antibodies to HIV, that produce results
  in sixty minutes or less, and encompasses  a  confirmatory  HIV  related
  test if the screening test is reactive.
    5.  "Capacity  to  consent"  means an individual's ability, determined
  without regard to the individual's age, to understand and appreciate the
  nature and consequences of a proposed health care service, treatment, or
  procedure, or of a  proposed  disclosure  of  confidential  HIV  related
  information,  as  the  case  may  be,  and  to make an informed decision
  concerning the service, treatment, procedure or disclosure.
    6. "Protected individual" means a person who is the subject of an  HIV
  related  test or who has been diagnosed as having HIV infection, AIDS or
  HIV related illness.
    7. "Confidential HIV related information" means  any  information,  in
  the  possession  of  a  person who provides one or more health or social
  services or who  obtains  the  information  pursuant  to  a  release  of
  confidential  HIV  related information, concerning whether an individual
  has been the subject of an HIV related test, or has HIV  infection,  HIV
  related  illness  or AIDS, or information which identifies or reasonably
  could identify an individual as having one or more of  such  conditions,
  including information pertaining to such individual's contacts.
    8.  "Health  or  social  service"  means  any  public or private care,
  treatment, clinical laboratory test, counseling or  educational  service
  for  adults  or  children,  and  acute, chronic, custodial, residential,
  outpatient, home or other health care provided pursuant to this  chapter
  or  the  social  services  law;  public assistance or care as defined in
  article one of the social  services  law;  employment-related  services,
  housing  services,  foster care, shelter, protective services, day care,
  or preventive services provided pursuant to  the  social  services  law;
  services  for  the  mentally  disabled  as defined in article one of the
  mental hygiene law; probation services, provided  pursuant  to  articles
  twelve  and  twelve-A  of  the  executive law; parole services, provided
  pursuant to  article  eight  of  the  correction  law;  corrections  and
  community   supervision,   provided  pursuant  to  the  correction  law;
  detention and  rehabilitative  services  provided  pursuant  to  article
  nineteen-G  of  the executive law; and the activities of the health care
  worker HIV/HBV advisory panel pursuant  to  article  twenty-seven-DD  of
  this chapter.
    9.  "Release  of confidential HIV related information" means a written
  authorization for disclosure of  confidential  HIV  related  information
  which  is  signed  by  the  protected  individual,  or  if the protected
  individual lacks capacity to consent, a person  authorized  pursuant  to
  law  to consent to health care for the individual. Such release shall be
  dated and shall specify to whom disclosure is  authorized,  the  purpose
  for  such  disclosure and the time period during which the release is to
  be effective. A general authorization for  the  release  of  medical  or

  other  information  shall  not be construed as a release of confidential
  HIV  related  information,  unless   such   authorization   specifically
  indicates   its   dual   purpose  as  a  general  authorization  and  an
  authorization  for  the  release of confidential HIV related information
  and complies with the requirements of this subdivision.
    10. "Contact" means  an  identified  spouse  or  sex  partner  of  the
  protected  individual,  a  person identified as having shared hypodermic
  needles or syringes with the protected individual or a  person  who  the
  protected  individual  may  have exposed to HIV under circumstances that
  present  a  risk  of  transmission  of  HIV,  as   determined   by   the
  commissioner.
    11.  "Person"  includes  any natural person, partnership, association,
  joint venture, trust, public or private corporation, or state  or  local
  government agency.
    12.  "Health  facility"  means  a  hospital  as defined in section two
  thousand eight hundred one of this chapter, blood  bank,  blood  center,
  sperm  bank,  organ  or  tissue  bank,  clinical laboratory, or facility
  providing care or treatment to  persons  with  a  mental  disability  as
  defined in article one of the mental hygiene law.
    13.  "Health  care  provider"  means any physician, nurse, provider of
  services for the mentally disabled as defined  in  article  one  of  the
  mental  hygiene  law,  or  other  person  involved in providing medical,
  nursing, counseling, or other health  care  or  mental  health  service,
  including  those  associated  with,  or  under  contract  to,  a  health
  maintenance organization or medical services plan.
    14. "Child" means any  protected  individual  actually  or  apparently
  under eighteen years of age.
    15.  "Authorized  agency"  means  any  agency defined by section three
  hundred seventy-one of the social services law and, for the purposes  of
  this  article, shall include such corporations incorporated or organized
  under the laws of the state as may be specifically authorized  by  their
  certificates  of  incorporation  to receive children for the purposes of
  adoption or foster care.
    16.  "Insurance  institution"  means  any  corporation,   association,
  partnership,   reciprocal  exchange,  interinsurer,  fraternal  benefits
  society, agent, broker or other entity including, but  not  limited  to,
  any  health  maintenance organization, medical service plan, or hospital
  plan which: (a) is engaged in the business of  insurance;  (b)  provides
  health   services  coverage  plans;  or  (c)  provides  benefits  under,
  administers, or provides services for, an employee welfare benefit  plan
  as defined in 29 U.S.C. 1002(1).
    17.  "Insurance  support  organization" means any person who regularly
  engages, in  whole  or  in  part,  in  the  practice  of  assembling  or
  collecting  information about natural persons for the primary purpose of
  providing the information to  an  insurance  institution  for  insurance
  transactions,  including:  (a)  the  furnishing  of  consumer reports or
  investigative consumer reports to an insurance instititution for use  in
  connection  with  an  insurance  transaction;  or  (b) the collection of
  personal information from  insurance  institutions  or  other  insurance
  support  organizations for the purpose of detecting or preventing fraud,
  material misrepresentation, or  material  non-disclosure  in  connection
  with  insurance  underwriting or insurance claim activity. The following
  persons shall not be considered  "insurance-support  organizations"  for
  the   purposes  of  this  article:  government  institutions,  insurance
  institutions, health facilities and health care providers.