Chapter 40 (Senate Bill 4264) amends the New York State Medical Care Facilities Finance Agency Act to increase the authorization of the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York("Authority"), as successor to the New York State Medical Care Facilities Finance Agency ("MCFFA") pursuant to the Health Care Financing Consolidation Act of 1995, to issue hospital and nursing home project bonds and notes from $12 billion dollars to $12.6 billion dollars.

Chapter 144 (Senate Bill 5322) amends the Public Health Law to extend certain sections thereof until June 30, 2006 to continue the authorized use of bad debt and charity care allowances for certified home health agencies, who provide uncompensated care.

Chapter 145 (Senate Bill 5325) amends the Public Health Law to extend certain provisions thereof, which authorize the Commissioner of Health to conduct voluntary demonstration programs to test the feasibility of establishing a statewide immunization registry for the tracking and monitoring of the state's immunization of children. Additionally, the chapter authorizes the continuation of the immunization advisory council's requirement to issue reports in connection with the pilot programs.

Chapter 196 (Senate Bill 760) amends the Public Health Law by removing the requirement of two witness signatures for any anatomical gift donor documentation. This improvement of current New York Law allows New York State's Anatomical Gift Act (codified under sections 4300-4309 of the Public Health Law) to become consistent with the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act of 1987. Section 2b of the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act of 1987 indicates, "an anatomical gift may be made only by a document of gift signed by the donor," clearly eliminating any need for witnesses or witness signatures.

Chapter 290 (Senate Bill 758) amends the Public Health Law, which provides immunity from liability for medical assistance rendered voluntarily and without expectation of monetary compensation. Articles 11-AA and 11-AAA of the General Municipal Law, however, provide service awards or benefit service awards, which may include payments pursuant to an established point system for services. This bill will eliminate any confusion, by clearly stating such service awards, as they are part of a system for providing payments to volunteer ambulance workers, may not be deemed monetary compensation.

Chapter 346 (Senate Bill 3341-A) extends the expiration date of paragraph (d) of subdivision 1 of section 4403-f of the public health law until December 31, 2007, to allow the continuation of those entities identified as an "Operating Demonstration" therein. Four of the five programs are Federally-designated Programs of the All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly, and include:  Rochester Health Care, Inc., Loretto Rest Nursing Home Company, Inc., Beth Abraham Hospital, and The Eddy (LTC), Inc.  The other program included within such definition is Eldercare: A Social Health Management Organization.

These five programs provide a comprehensive alternative to other state-offered long-term care programs. Clients receive assessment and care planning, as well as services from an interdisciplinary team typically consisting of a physician, nurse, social worker and physical therapist. Over time, Operating Demonstrations have shown marked reductions in hospital admissions and lengths of stay for their members.

Chapter 351 (Senate Bill 4943-A) amends the Public Health Law, by authorizing a registered physician's assistant employed by a hospital within the purview of its bylaws, rules and regulations to write medical orders, including those for controlled substances without the requirement of a countersignature. Nevertheless, a countersignature of such orders may be required, if deemed necessary and appropriate by the supervising physician or hospital

Chapter 413 (Senate Bill 4869-A) amends the Public Health Law to authorize the Commissioner of Health to establish standards for opioid overdose prevention programs, which will include standards for program directors, appropriate clinical oversight, training, record keeping and reporting. The chapter also requires the State Department of Health to publish unprecedented statewide findings on opioid overdose deaths, which may be a part of existing state mortality reports. The report will be submitted annually for the next three years and will reflect contextual information on deaths related to opioid overdose including: age, gender, ethnicity, and geographic location; data on emergency room utilization for the treatment of opioid overdose; data on utilization of pre-hospital services; and suggested improvements in data collection. The reporting requirements, as delineated in this chapter, will have minimal administrative impact on the State Department of Health, as an infrastructure already exists to accommodate the new requirements. The chapter also amends section 6512 of the Education Law by precluding the purchase, acquisition, possession or use of an opioid antagonist (e.g. Narcan) from constituting unlawful practice of a profession.

Chapter 429 (Senate Bill 5732) amends the Public Health Law and the Education Law to allow a registered nurse to administer HIV tests without getting individual patient specific orders from a physician or nurse practitioner.

Chapter 440 (Senate Bill 4973-A) amends the Public Health Law to create a mechanism for reporting raw data on patients transferred, admitted or treated in a hospital emergency room subsequent to a medical, surgical or diagnostic procedure performed in an office-based setting.

Chapter 449 (Senate Bill 4862-A) amends the Public Health Law by adding a new Article 30-B entitled Emergency Medical, Trauma and Disaster Care Act. This bill will statutorily provide for the establishment a uniform system for managing emergency medical, trauma and disaster care throughout the state. The chapter codifies the work of the existing State Trauma Advisory Committee (established and controlled by 10 NYCRR 708.2(b)), which oversees the New York State Trauma System and Registry. This bill provides both entities with statutory authority and coordinates their efforts, resulting in a model Trauma System at no additional cost to New York.

Chapter 564 (Senate Bill 4244-A) amends the Public Health Law to add a new subdivision 11, which lists the services a managed long-term care operating demonstration plan is authorized to provide, including adult care, assisted living, and enriched housing program services.

Chapter 45 (Senate Bill 1184 - Senator Little) - Authorizes health care practitioners (e.g. physicians, physician’s assistants, physical therapists, massage therapists, chiropractors, dentists, optometrists, nurses, nurse practitioners or podiatrists) licensed to practice in other states to practice in New York State in connection with an event sanctioned by Ironman USA, Inc.

Chapter 114 (Senate Bill 978 - Senator Maziarz) - Portable x-ray services are important to the aged, infirm and chronically ill citizens of New York State, particularly those who are residents of long term care facilities or homebound. This law extends the expiration date of a demonstration program established in 1997 to study the cost effectiveness of Medicaid coverage for portable x-ray services until June 30, 2006. If an individual cannot access portable x-ray services when an x-ray is ordered by an authorized health care practitioner, then the person must be transported by ambulance to a stationary radiological site.

Chapter 356 (Senate Bill 1771B - Senator Marcellino) Toxic mold poses an unacceptable risk to New York State’s health and environment. Molds can cause allergies, trigger asthma attacks, detrimentally affect the function of vital human organs and increase susceptibility to colds and flu. Creates a 14-member Task Force, which includes the Commissioner of Health and the Secretary of State to assess the nature, scope and magnitude of the adverse environmental impact caused by toxic mold in the State; identify actions taken by the State and local governments and other entities; assess the latest scientific data on exposure limits to mold in indoor environments; and determine methods for the control of mold in a cost-effective and environmentally sound manner and identify measures to mitigate mold. The Taskforce is responsible to prepare a report and submit to the Governor and the Legislature no later than November 30, 2006.

Chapter 603 (Senate Bill 2707-C - Senator Skelos) Prohibits the administration of any vaccine to children under age three and pregnant women that contains more than a trace amount of mercury (more than .5 micrograms of mercury per .5 milliliter) except under certain circumstances (e.g. the administration of flu vaccines). The Commissioner of Health is authorized to use vaccines containing more than the aforementioned mercury levels when he or she determines it is necessary to prevent or respond to an outbreak of disease.

Chapter 752 (Senate Bill 5867 - Senator Maziarz) Establishes a two-year demonstration program to research the effect of safe handling programs in health care facilities across New York State. The goal of the program is to design a "best" practice for safe patient handling in New York State health care facilities. This bill was developed because nursing is among occupations whose personnel suffer from the highest risk of developing musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). Patient-handling tasks (e.g. lifting, transferring and repositioning of patients), which are often performed manually and repetitively, are primary causes of MSDs.