March 16, 2015- The "amendment" to the NY State bill that wasn't shared with the public before the bill was pushed through last year has passed through the process again and was quickly signed by the Governor, with obviously no fan fare.

What? No PARTY to celebrate? No rush to put out press releases and claim credit? No announcements on Senator Hannon, the NY Lyme groups, or the NY Governors' websites? I guess not!

Why? Because it is worse now for doctors in NY than it was before this bill was passed, if you can believe that. This LAW, well, let's just say, like ticks, it sucks too.

To be honest, as an invitee to the group working on this bill and after doing a lot of work for this effort, I eventually had to get away from the the people that were bent on getting this bill passed no matter the consequences because it reeked with major PREDICTABLE problems.

Plus, my opinions were not welcomed since they were in objection to moving forward and allowing Senator Hannon, with the NIH/IDSA sitting in his lap, to control the outcome and final wording of the bill by way of the unseen amendment.

I felt it was dangerous to take risks with doctor's livelihoods and patients lives and when I couldn't convince others to see that reasoning I bowed out (or was tossed out, I forget?). And yes, I am angry. This should never have happened.

This action not only negatively affects the future, it destroyed the hard work of many good people over many years, making those efforts a waste of time and energy, yes, my time and energy too.

You don't play with politicians, especially those who have publicly not supported our efforts in the past. And you don't play with people's lives, period.

But, don't take my word for it, here is a summary of the anticipated problems from the LDA that was written before the amendment was passed. My words are simple.... you don't hand someone a blank check with your signature on it, especially when they've been horribly bad to you in the past, and let them fill out what ever they want on the check, which is EXACTLY what was done with this bill.

In Dec 2014, Governor Cuomo signed the Lyme disease doctor protection bill into law. When he signed, he indicated he only signed on the condition an amendment would be passed in the New Year (2015), and at that time, the amendment was not made public, but some groups were told it would be just a "technical" amendment.

Due to the uncertain nature of that amendment and lack of process transparency, the LDA withheld its judgment on the New York bill with the upcoming amendment and how it might affect New York doctors treating long term. After examining the amendment, now released by NYS and yet to be passed, the LDA does NOT support its adoption.

On balance, the proposed new language may be more harmful than helpful in protecting licensed health care practitioners from intrusive investigations lacking a meritorious basis and may facilitate rather than discourage investigations (no matter how they are labeled) launched to find something wrong. The question becomes, "Why pass something that, in the best case, would be unlikely to provide any significant benefit or relief, but may likely make things significantly worse?"

(See amendment text here http://open.nysenate.gov/legislation/bill/S1693-2015. The weather has complicated the scheduling of any actions, so check back here regularly to find out if anything can or needs to be done).

READ MORE HERE- http://www.lymediseaseassociation.org/index.php/state-activities/new-york/1327-lyme-protection-amdt-may-hurt-ny-docs

Here is the official information on the amendment, that is now a law.

Bill S1693-2015

Details

Actions

• Mar 13, 2015: SIGNED CHAP.11
• Mar 6, 2015: DELIVERED TO GOVERNOR
• Mar 2, 2015: returned to senate
• Mar 2, 2015: passed assembly
• Mar 2, 2015: ordered to third reading cal.44
• Mar 2, 2015: substituted for a2554
• Feb 9, 2015: referred to health
• Feb 9, 2015: DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY
• Feb 9, 2015: PASSED SENATE
• Jan 21, 2015: ORDERED TO THIRD READING CAL.26
• Jan 14, 2015: REFERRED TO RULES

Meetings

• Rules: Jan 21, 2015

Calendars

• Active List: Feb 9, 2015
• Floor Calendar: Jan 21, 2015
• Floor Calendar: Jan 22, 2015
• Floor Calendar: Feb 2, 2015
• Floor Calendar: Feb 3, 2015
• Floor Calendar: Feb 9, 2015

Votes

VOTE: COMMITTEE VOTE: - Rules - Jan 21, 2015

Ayes (24): Skelos, DeFrancisco, Bonacic, Carlucci, Farley, Flanagan, Hannon, Golden, LaValle, Little, Marcellino, Nozzolio, Seward, Valesky, Young, Stewart-Cousins, Breslin, Dilan, Espaillat, Gianaris, Hassell-Thompson, Krueger, Montgomery, Perkins

Excused (1): Parker

VOTE: FLOOR VOTE: - Feb 9, 2015

Ayes (61): Addabbo, Amedore, Avella, Bonacic, Boyle, Breslin, Carlucci, Comrie, Croci, DeFrancisco, Diaz, Dilan, Espaillat, Farley, Felder, Flanagan, Funke, Gallivan, Gianaris, Golden, Griffo, Hamilton, Hannon, Hassell-Thomps, Hoylman, Kennedy, Klein, Krueger, Lanza, Larkin, Latimer, LaValle, Libous, Little, Marcellino, Marchione, Martins, Montgomery, Murphy, Nozzolio, O'Mara, Ortt, Panepinto, Peralta, Perkins, Ranzenhofer, Ritchie, Rivera, Robach, Sampson, Savino, Serino, Serrano, Seward, Skelos, Squadron, Stavisky, Stewart-Cousin, Valesky, Venditto, Young

Excused (2): Parker, Sanders

Memo

Text

STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1693 2015-2016 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 14, 2015 ___________

Introduced by Sen. HANNON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to identification, charging, reporting and investigation of charges of professional misconduct by health care professionals THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM- BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. Subdivision 9-b of section 230 of the public health law, as added by chapter 532 of the laws of 2014, is amended to read as follows: 9-b. Neither the board for professional medical conduct nor the office of professional medical conduct shall [identify,] charge A LICENSEE WITH MISCONDUCT AS DEFINED IN SECTIONS SIXTY-FIVE HUNDRED THIRTY AND SIXTY-FIVE HUNDRED THIRTY-ONE OF THE EDUCATION LAW, or cause a report made to the director of such office to be investigated BEYOND A PRELIMI- NARY REVIEW AS SET FORTH IN CLAUSE (A) OF SUBPARAGRAPH (I) OF PARAGRAPH (A) OF SUBDIVISION TEN OF THIS SECTION, WHERE SUCH REPORT IS DETERMINED TO BE based solely upon the recommendation or provision of a treatment modality TO A PARTICULAR PATIENT by [a] SUCH licensee that is not universally accepted by the medical profession, including but not limit- ed to, varying modalities used in the treatment of Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseases. [As used in this subdivision the term "licen- see" shall mean a physician, physician's assistant, and specialist's assistant.] When a licensee, acting in accordance with paragraph e of subdivision four of section sixty-five hundred twenty-seven of the education law, recommends or provides a treatment modality that effec- tively treats human disease, pain, injury, deformity or physical condi- tion FOR WHICH THE LICENSEE IS TREATING A PATIENT, the recommendation or provision of that modality TO A PARTICULAR PATIENT shall not, by itself, constitute professional misconduct. [This prohibition shall not exoner- ate such licensee from otherwise applicable professional requirements]

THE LICENSEE SHALL OTHERWISE ABIDE BY ALL OTHER APPLICABLE PROFESSIONAL REQUIREMENTS. S 2. Subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 10 of section 230 of the public health law, is amended by chapter 542 of the laws of 2000, is amended to read as follows: (i) (A) The board for professional medical conduct, by the director of the office of professional medical conduct, may investigate on its own any suspected professional misconduct, and shall investigate each complaint received regardless of the source. BY THE CONCLUSION OF A PRELIMINARY REVIEW, INCLUDING AN INTERNAL CLINICAL REVIEW, THE DIRECTOR SHALL DETERMINE IF A REPORT IS BASED SOLELY UPON THE RECOMMENDATION OR PROVISION OF A TREATMENT MODALITY BY A LICENSEE THAT IS NOT UNIVERSALLY ACCEPTED BY THE MEDICAL PROFESSION, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO VARYING MODALITIES USED IN THE TREATMENT OF LYME DISEASE OR OTHER TICK-BORNE DISEASES. UPON A DETERMINATION BY THE DIRECTOR THAT A REPORT IS BASED SOLELY UPON THE PROVISION OF A TREATMENT MODALITY THAT IS NOT UNIVERSALLY ACCEPTED, NO FURTHER REVIEW SHALL BE CONDUCTED AND NO CHARG- ES SHALL BE BROUGHT. NOTHING IN THIS SECTION SHALL PRECLUDE THE DIRECTOR FROM MAKING SUCH A DETERMINATION EARLIER IN, OR SUBSEQUENT TO, A PRELIM- INARY REVIEW. (B) The director of the office of professional medical conduct shall cause a preliminary review of every report made to the department pursuant to section twenty-eight hundred three-e as added by chapter eight hundred sixty-six of the laws of nineteen hundred eighty, sections twenty-eight hundred five-l and forty-four hundred five-b of this chapter, and section three hundred fifteen of the insurance law, to determine if such report reasonably appears to reflect physician conduct warranting further investigation pursuant to this subparagraph. S 3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to any professional discipline matter or administrative or judicial review thereof pending on or after the date on which this act shall take effect; provided, however, that the amendments to subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of subdivision 10 of section 230 of the public health law made by section two of this act shall not affect the expiration of such paragraph and shall be deemed to expire therewith.

Link for above information here:

http://open.nysenate.gov/legislation/bill/S1693-2015

Promises of a good bill passing, but they really don't know what it was going to say.

That is D-A-N-G-E-R-O-U-S!!!!