Paulin Sponsors Bills to Improve the Healthcare and Well Being of New Yorkers

As one of the most productive representatives in the NYS Legislature, over 400 of Amy Paulin’s bills have been signed into law to date. First elected in 2001, she now chairs the Assembly Committee on Health and serves on the Committees on Rules and Education. This session she continued to sponsor legislation to improve the health and well-being of New Yorkers.

Here are just a few of the bills that were signed in to law – and others that were vetoed by the Governor.

Governor Hochul signed into law three key pieces of legislation that she authored (Chs. 520, 476, 474 of 2024) which will help address healthcare workforce shortages and expand healthcare access for New Yorkers.

A.8378/S.9038 increases the number of physician assistants (PAs) that can be supervised by a physician. It further provides that PAs may prescribe and order non-patient specific orders for certain immunizations and treatments and write medical orders for durable medical equipment.

“During the pandemic, under the Governor’s executive orders, PAs were given greater latitude to treat patients, taking full advantage of their extensive training and experience,” said Assemblywoman Amy Paulin. “Patients, hospitals and clinics throughout New York benefitted from the increased access to care during that time. Many New Yorkers still face barriers to health care which stem from a shortage of health care professionals. By modernizing practice guidelines for PAs, this law will increase the number of providers available to treat patients, expanding access to quality care across the State.”

A.8247C/S.8470 expands access to radiology services by authorizing the intravenous administration of contrast media by a radiographer when done under the direct supervision of a licensed physician, certified nurse practitioner, or licensed physician assistant.
“By allowing physician assistants and nurse practitioners to supervise the administration of IV contrast media, we’re cutting down unnecessary delays in care for procedures like MRIs and CT scans,” said Assemblywoman Amy Paulin. “This will allow radiologic technologists to work more efficiently, give New Yorkers high quality and timely care, and allow physicians to focus on critical patient care. This is a commonsense way to address the healthcare workforce shortage and increase healthcare access by increasing efficiency.”

A.8168/S.7690 provides Medicaid coverage for remote ultrasound scans and remote fetal non-stress tests. While NYS Medicaid provides coverage for telemedicine services, coverage of remote ultrasound scans and remote fetal non-stress tests has been ambiguous. This new law clarifies and codifies that remote ultrasound scans and remote fetal non-stress tests are fully covered by Medicaid.
By increasing access to remote interventions, this new law will prevent gaps in care for rural New Yorkers, enhance access to care for all expecting mothers, and improve health outcomes for New York’s moms and babies.

Paulin’s Parkinson’s Disease Registry Bill was signed into law. The legislation will establish a state Parkinson's Disease Registry (A.5803/S.4674) which would provide for the collection of data on the incidence and prevalence of Parkinson’s disease (PD). The registry will help expand understanding of PD and advance research towards prevention, treatment and an eventual cure.
A registry of people with Parkinson’s will help researchers identify high-risk groups, detect prevalence patterns among the New York population, and uncover disparities in treatment in marginalized communities. Currently, ten other states, including California, already have such a registry.

“There are many researchers, doctors and advocates who are working to win the battle against Parkinson’s Disease,” said Paulin. “I’m proud to have authored the Parkinson’s Disease Registry bill to help in their fight against this disease, and am thrilled that it has now been signed into law. The more data we can give to researchers, the better they can direct their efforts to find a cure and more advanced therapies.

(A.9632/S.9144) which eliminates the funding cap for New York’s Spinal Cord Injury Research Program was signed by the Governor.
In 1998, through the advocacy of Christopher Reeve and State Police Sergeant Paul Richter, the Spinal Cord Injury Research Program (SCIRP) was established in New York State. Both men had serious spinal cord injuries that resulted in paralysis. Given that most spinal cord injuries result from vehicle accidents, the State Legislature chose to fund the research program through a surcharge on moving traffic violations. The original legislation placed an arbitrary statutory cap of $8.5 million on the amount that could be dedicated to SCIRP funding, which has never been increased. The surcharge being generated is now higher than that amount and could increase the SCIRP’s funding.

“Research funded by SCIRP has led to breakthroughs that allow individuals with spinal cord injuries to regain the use of their arms and hands and enhance the quality of life for those with spinal cord injuries,” said Assemblywoman Amy Paulin. “New York is one of only a few states funding this important research. By uncapping SCIRP’s funding we’ll have an opportunity to continue leading the nation in groundbreaking progress for spinal cord injury research. Plus every dollar in SCIRP funds leverages seven dollars in funding from the federal government.”

Governor Kathy Hochul signed (Ch. 543 of 2024) into law. The legislation mandates cell phone carriers limit or disable service to stolen cell phones.

This law requires that cell phone carriers maintain a program to prevent the activation of a cell phone which appears on the GSMA Block List, a global registry of lost, stolen, fraudulent or broken devices. When a carrier is notified by a retail store selling new phones or by a verified customer that a phone has been stolen, the carrier is required to suspend or prevent the activation of the device.
“Any robbery has the potential to turn into something violent, which we saw in New York City, where Detective Brian Simonsen was tragically killed during a cell phone store robbery,” said Assemblywoman Amy Paulin. “We need to keep our officers and residents safe, and this is a commonsense step in that direction. If robbers know they won’t be able to use the phones they steal, there’s no reason to steal them.”

Bills Vetoed

However the Governor also vetoed several laws championed by Paulin. Among them was a bill sponsored by Paulin which would permanently carve out school-based health centers (SBHCs) from Medicaid Managed Care, which has the potential to cause fiscal stress to SBHCs, affecting the healthcare for the many New York children who rely on SBHC’s for primary care.

SBHCs provide comprehensive physical, chronic, mental, and dental health services to over 350,000 New York youth, regardless of insurance status or ability to pay. They play a crucial role in ensuring that all children receive the care they need.

“SBHCs increase access to health services for children, reduce ethnic and racial disparities in healthcare, and improve school attendance and performance,” said Assemblywoman Amy Paulin. “They provide care to every child who enters their door, regardless of insurance status or ability to pay and serve as a critical point of care for the state’s most vulnerable children who may otherwise fall through the cracks.”

Since 1985, SBHCs have operated under a "carve out" from Medicaid Managed Care (MMC), receiving direct fee-for-service reimbursements from New York State. However, recent proposals have threatened to end this arrangement, potentially forcing SBHCs to negotiate with managed care plans.

Another vetoed bill was Paulin’s Bedsore Prevention Program, a bill which would require hospitals and residential healthcare facilities to implement a pressure ulcer (bedsore) prevention program has been vetoed by Governor Hochul. The program makes bedsore prevention in healthcare facilities a priority and ultimately mitigates the prevalence of patients getting bedsores. Paulin’s legislation also mandates that the NYS Health Commissioner evaluates the current reimbursement policy for pressure ulcer prevention programs and reports on the current reimbursement options.

“With the right resources, healthcare facilities have the ability to prevent pressure ulcers and the added pain for patients,” said Assemblywoman Amy Paulin. “Pressure ulcers are not an inevitable consequence of limited mobility, they are a failure of care. The program proposed by my bill would have created a systematic approach to prevention, training healthcare providers to be proactive against pressure ulcers.”

Pressure ulcers, also known as bed sores, occur when there is prolonged pressure on one spot on the skin which harms the tissue underneath. Individuals with limited mobility or those who are completely immobile may develop pressure ulcers due to not being able to change positions when lying down. Pressure ulcers can lead to more serious conditions like sepsis and bone infections if left untreated. In the United States, there are more than 2.5 million cases of pressure ulcers each year.

Also vetoed was a bill to address the unacceptably slow contract and procurement process faced by non-profit organizations that contract with New York State. S.4877A.2740B. The bill would have required agencies that fail to submit renewal contracts to the Attorney General or execute them in a timely fashion to report to the State Comptroller on the status of those late contracts. The bill also would have required agencies with delayed contracts to report to the Comptroller on barriers to submitting and executing contracts in a timely manner, and their plans to address those issues.

New York State relies on not-for-profits for everything from early education childhood programs to safety net services including mental health assistance, homeless shelters and legal counseling. The state outsources to and relies on not-for-profits to provide these services, and without them many programs would not even exist. These agencies are performing work that the state is obligated to do by law. It would be more expensive if the state did the work. Unfortunately, the timeliness of the state’s contracting process and procurement is consistently slow, delaying payments and often undermining the financial stability of these organizations.

Another veto was a bill that would allow everyone to have access to medical equipment and technology, especially the elderly and most vulnerable. “I am deeply disappointed with Governor Hochul’s veto of A.6022a/S.4787a,” said Assemblywoman Amy Paulin. “This legislation would provide a more streamlined and transparent process for providers, and the public, to have new and advanced medical technology and services covered by Medicaid.”

Currently the Evidence Based Benefits Review Advisory Committee (EBBRAC) determines what services and technologies Medicaid should cover. Under EBRAC’s current setup, they must contract with an outside vendor who reviews new potential contracts. However EBBRAC has been without a vendor since 2017. This legislation would change the EBBRAC process to ensure that the Health Department maintains the ability to approve or disapprove new technologies or services without a vendor. The bill also requires EBBRAC to maintain periodic reviews of pending applications.