2020 New York Laws
PBH - Public Health
Article 28 - Hospitals
2803-C - Rights of Patients in Certain Medical Facilities.

§  2803-c.  Rights  of  patients in certain medical facilities. 1. The
principles enunciated in subdivision three hereof are declared to be the
public policy of the state and a copy of such statement  of  rights  and
responsibilities shall be posted conspicuously in a public place in each
facility covered hereunder.
  2. The commissioner shall require that every nursing home and facility
providing  health  related  service,  as  defined in subdivision two and
paragraph (b) of subdivision four of section twenty-eight hundred one of
this article, shall adopt and make public a statement of the rights  and
responsibilities  of  the  patients  who  are  receiving  care  in  such
facilities, and  shall  treat  such  patients  in  accordance  with  the
provisions of such statement.
  3.  Said  statement  of rights and responsibilities shall include, but
not be limited to the following:
  a. Every patient's civil and religious liberties, including the  right
to  independent  personal  decisions and knowledge of available choices,
shall not be infringed and the facility shall encourage  and  assist  in
the fullest possible exercise of these rights.
  b.  Every  patient shall have the right to have private communications
and consultations with his or her physician,  attorney,  and  any  other
person.
  c.  Every patient shall have the right to present grievances on behalf
of  himself  or  herself  or  others,  to  the   facility's   staff   or
administrator, to governmental officials, or to any other person without
fear  of reprisal, and to join with other patients or individuals within
or outside of the facility to work for improvements in patient care.
  d. Every patient shall have  the  right  to  manage  his  or  her  own
financial  affairs,  or  to  have at least a quarterly accounting of any
personal financial transactions undertaken in his or her behalf  by  the
facility  during  any  period  of  time  the  patient has delegated such
responsibilities to the facility.
  e. Every  patient  shall  have  the  right  to  receive  adequate  and
appropriate  medical  care,  to  be fully informed of his or her medical
condition and proposed treatment unless medically  contraindicated,  and
to  refuse  medication  and  treatment after being fully informed of and
understanding the consequences of such actions.
  f. Every patient shall have the right to have privacy in treatment and
in caring for  personal  needs,  confidentiality  in  the  treatment  of
personal   and   medical  records,  and  security  in  storing  personal
possessions.
  g. Every patient shall have the right to receive courteous, fair,  and
respectful  care  and  treatment and a written statement of the services
provided by the facility, including those required to be offered  on  an
as-needed basis.
  h. Every patient shall be free from mental and physical abuse and from
physical  and chemical restraints, except those restraints authorized in
writing by a physician for a specified and limited period of time or  as
are necessitated by an emergency in which case the restraint may only be
applied by a qualified licensed nurse who shall set forth in writing the
circumstances requiring the use of restraint and in the case of use of a
chemical  restraint  a  physician  shall be consulted within twenty-four
hours.
  i. A statement of the facility's regulations and an explanation of the
patient's responsibility to  obey  all  reasonable  regulations  of  the
facility  and to respect the personal rights and private property of the
other patients.
  j. A statement that should the patient be adjudicated incompetent  and
not  be  restored  to  legal  capacity,  or  if  a conservator should be

appointed for the patient, the above rights and  responsibilities  shall
be   exercised   by   the   appointed  committee  or  conservator  in  a
representative capacity.
  k.  Every  patient shall have the right to receive upon request kosher
food or food products prepared in accordance with sections  two  hundred
one-a,  two  hundred  one-b and two hundred one-c of the agriculture and
markets law.
  k-1. Every patient shall have the right to receive upon request  halal
food  or  food products prepared in accordance with sections two hundred
one-e, two hundred one-f and two hundred one-g of  the  agriculture  and
markets law.
  l.  Pursuant  to  regulations  promulgated  by  the  commissioner,  no
facility or individual and no general hospital providing medical care to
persons having been admitted from such facilities  or  from  adult  care
facilities covered by the provisions of section four hundred sixty-one-b
of  the  social  services  law, or to applicants for readmission to such
facilities or to adult care facilities  covered  by  the  provisions  of
section  four  hundred  sixty-one-b  of  the  social services law, shall
restrict or prohibit the access to the facility or general hospital  nor
interfere  with  the  performance  of  the  official  duties,  including
confidential  visits  with  residents,  of   duly   designated   persons
participating in the long term care ombudsman program as provided for in
section two hundred eighteen of the elder law.
  m.   Pursuant  to  regulations  promulgated  by  the  commissioner  in
consultation with the director of the office for the aging, no  facility
shall  restrict or prohibit access by records access ombudsmen specially
designated under section five hundred forty-four of the executive law to
the medical or personal records of  any  patient  or  resident  if  such
patient   or   resident,   or,   where  appropriate,  committee  for  an
incompetent, has given  express  written  consent  to  such  disclosure;
provided,  however,  that (i) in the case of medical records, disclosure
may be exclusive of the personal notes of the physician  as  defined  in
such  regulations and (ii) access may be limited to such times as may be
specified in such regulations. Such records shall be made available by a
member or members of the facility's staff who shall be designated by the
facility to provide access to and, where  necessary,  interpretation  of
such  records to such records access ombudsman, who shall have the right
to photocopy such records. The facility may charge a reasonable fee  for
photocopying  pursuant  to  such  regulations.  Disclosure  to a records
access ombudsman of records of any patient or resident pursuant  to  the
written  consent  of such patient or resident shall not give rise to any
claim against the facility, its staff, or the  patient's  or  resident's
physician  based  solely on the fact of such disclosure pursuant to such
written consent. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed  to  limit
or  abridge any right of access to records, including financial records,
otherwise available to ombudsmen, patients or residents,  or  any  other
person.
  n.   Pursuant  to  regulations  promulgated  by  the  commissioner  in
consultation with the director of the office for the aging, no  facility
or  individual  shall  retaliate or take reprisals against any resident,
employee, or other person for having filed a complaint with,  or  having
provided   information   to,   any  long  term  care  patient  ombudsman
functioning in accordance with section five hundred forty-four  or  five
hundred  forty-five  of  the  executive  law,  nor shall any facility or
individual interfere with the official duties  of  any  such  ombudsman.
Such regulations shall provide for appropriate sanctions with respect to
such retaliation, reprisals, or interference.
  (o)  Every  patient  shall  have  the  right to authorize those family
members and other adults who will be given priority to visit  consistent
with the patient's or resident's ability to receive visitors.
  p.  A  statement  informing  the  patient  of his or her right to make
organ, tissue or whole body  donations,  and  the  means  by  which  the
patient  may make such a donation. The commissioner shall promulgate any
rules and regulations necessary to  implement  the  provisions  of  this
paragraph.
  q.  A  statement  indicating  the policy of the facility regarding the
granting of physician privileges to residents.
  4. Each facility shall give a copy of the statement to each patient at
or prior to the time of admission to the facility, or to  the  appointed
personal representative at the time of appointment and to each member of
the facility's staff.
  5.  Each facility shall prepare a written plan and provide appropriate
staff training  to  implement  each  patient's  right  included  in  the
statement.