N.Y. Educ. Law § 6527

§ 6527. Special provisions. 1. A not-for-profit medical or dental\nexpense indemnity corporation or a hospital service corporation\norganized under the insurance law may employ licensed physicians and\nenter into contracts with partnerships or medical corporations organized\nunder article forty-four of the public health law, health maintenance\norganizations possessing a certificate of authority pursuant to article\nforty-four of the public health law, professional corporations organized\nunder article fifteen of the business corporation law or other groups of\nphysicians to practice medicine on its behalf for persons insured under\nits contracts or policies.\n 2. Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of any general, special\nor local law, any licensed physician who voluntarily and without the\nexpectation of monetary compensation renders first aid or emergency\ntreatment at the scene of an accident or other emergency, outside a\nhospital, doctor's office or any other place having proper and necessary\nmedical equipment, to a person who is unconscious, ill or injured, shall\nnot be liable for damages for injuries alleged to have been sustained by\nsuch person or for damages for the death of such person alleged to have\noccurred by reason of an act or omission in the rendering of such first\naid or emergency treatment unless it is established that such injuries\nwere or such death was caused by gross negligence on the part of such\nphysician. Nothing in this subdivision shall be deemed or construed to\nrelieve a licensed physician from liability for damages for injuries or\ndeath caused by an act or omission on the part of a physician while\nrendering professional services in the normal and ordinary course of his\npractice.\n 3. No individual who serves as a member of (a) a committee established\nto administer a utilization review plan of a hospital, including a\nhospital as defined in article twenty-eight of the public health law or\na hospital as defined in subdivision ten of section 1.03 of the mental\nhygiene law, or (b) a committee having the responsibility of the\ninvestigation of an incident reported pursuant to section 29.29 of the\nmental hygiene law or the evaluation and improvement of the quality of\ncare rendered in a hospital as defined in article twenty-eight of the\npublic health law or a hospital as defined in subdivision ten of section\n1.03 of the mental hygiene law, or (c) any medical review committee or\nsubcommittee thereof of a local, county or state medical, dental,\npodiatry or optometrical society, any such society itself, a\nprofessional standards review organization or an individual when such\ncommittee, subcommittee, society, organization or individual is\nperforming any medical or quality assurance review function including\nthe investigation of an incident reported pursuant to section 29.29 of\nthe mental hygiene law, either described in clauses (a) and (b) of this\nsubdivision, required by law, or involving any controversy or dispute\nbetween (i) a physician, dentist, podiatrist or optometrist or hospital\nadministrator and a patient concerning the diagnosis, treatment or care\nof such patient or the fees or charges therefor or (ii) a physician,\ndentist, podiatrist or optometrist or hospital administrator and a\nprovider of medical, dental, podiatric or optometrical services\nconcerning any medical or health charges or fees of such physician,\ndentist, podiatrist or optometrist, or (d) a committee appointed\npursuant to section twenty-eight hundred five-j of the public health law\nto participate in the medical and dental malpractice prevention program,\nor (e) any individual who participated in the preparation of incident\nreports required by the department of health pursuant to section\ntwenty-eight hundred five-l of the public health law, or (f) a committee\nestablished to administer a utilization review plan, or a committee\nhaving the responsibility of evaluation and improvement of the quality\nof care rendered, in a health maintenance organization organized under\narticle forty-four of the public health law or article forty-three of\nthe insurance law, including a committee of an individual practice\nassociation or medical group acting pursuant to a contract with such a\nhealth maintenance organization, shall be liable in damages to any\nperson for any action taken or recommendations made, by him within the\nscope of his function in such capacity provided that (a) such individual\nhas taken action or made recommendations within the scope of his\nfunction and without malice, and (b) in the reasonable belief after\nreasonable investigation that the act or recommendation was warranted,\nbased upon the facts disclosed.\n Neither the proceedings nor the records relating to performance of a\nmedical or a quality assurance review function or participation in a\nmedical and dental malpractice prevention program nor any report\nrequired by the department of health pursuant to section twenty-eight\nhundred five-l of the public health law described herein, including the\ninvestigation of an incident reported pursuant to section 29.29 of the\nmental hygiene law, shall be subject to disclosure under article\nthirty-one of the civil practice law and rules except as hereinafter\nprovided or as provided by any other provision of law. No person in\nattendance at a meeting when a medical or a quality assurance review or\na medical and dental malpractice prevention program or an incident\nreporting function described herein was performed, including the\ninvestigation of an incident reported pursuant to section 29.29 of the\nmental hygiene law, shall be required to testify as to what transpired\nthereat. The prohibition relating to discovery of testimony shall not\napply to the statements made by any person in attendance at such a\nmeeting who is a party to an action or proceeding the subject matter of\nwhich was reviewed at such meeting.\n 4. This article shall not be construed to affect or prevent the\nfollowing:\n a. The furnishing of medical assistance in an emergency;\n b. The practice of the religious tenets of any church;\n c. A physician from refusing to perform an act constituting the\npractice of medicine to which he is conscientiously opposed by reason of\nreligious training and belief.\n d. The organization of a medical corporation under article forty-four\nof the public health law, the organization of a university faculty\npractice corporation under section fourteen hundred twelve of the\nnot-for-profit corporation law or the organization of a professional\nservice corporation under article fifteen of the business corporation\nlaw.\n e. The physician's use of whatever medical care, conventional or\nnon-conventional, which effectively treats human disease, pain, injury,\ndeformity or physical condition.\n 5. There shall be no monetary liability on the part of, and no cause\nof action for damages shall arise against, any person, partnership,\ncorporation, firm, society, or other entity on account of the\ncommunication of information in the possession of such person or entity,\nor on account of any recommendation or evaluation, regarding the\nqualifications, fitness, or professional conduct or practices of a\nphysician, to any governmental agency, medical or specialists society, a\nhospital as defined in article twenty-eight of the public health law, a\nhospital as defined in subdivision ten of section 1.03 of the mental\nhygiene law, or a health maintenance organization organized under\narticle forty-four of the public health law or article forty-three of\nthe insurance law, including a committee of an individual practice\nassociation or medical group acting pursuant to a contract with a health\nmaintenance organization. The foregoing shall not apply to information\nwhich is untrue and communicated with malicious intent.\n 6. A licensed physician may prescribe and order a non-patient specific\nregimen to a registered professional nurse, pursuant to regulations\npromulgated by the commissioner, and consistent with the public health\nlaw, for:\n (a) administering immunizations.\n (b) the emergency treatment of anaphylaxis.\n (c) administering purified protein derivative (PPD) tests or other\ntests to detect or screen for tuberculosis infections.\n (d) administering tests to determine the presence of the human\nimmunodeficiency virus.\n (e) administering tests to determine the presence of the hepatitis C\nvirus.\n (f) the urgent or emergency treatment of opioid related overdose or\nsuspected opioid related overdose.\n (g) screening of persons at increased risk of syphilis, gonorrhea and\nchlamydia.\n * 7. A licensed physician may prescribe and order a patient specific\norder or non-patient specific regimen to a licensed pharmacist, pursuant\nto regulations promulgated by the commissioner, and consistent with the\npublic health law, for administering immunizations to prevent influenza,\npneumococcal, acute herpes zoster, meningococcal, tetanus, diphtheria or\npertussis disease and medications required for emergency treatment of\nanaphylaxis. Nothing in this subdivision shall authorize unlicensed\npersons to administer immunizations, vaccines or other drugs.\n * NB Effective until July 1, 2019\n * 7. A licensed physician may prescribe and order a non-patient\nspecific regimen to a licensed pharmacist, pursuant to regulations\npromulgated by the commissioner, and consistent with the public health\nlaw, for administering immunizations. Nothing in this subdivision shall\nauthorize unlicensed persons to administer immunizations, vaccines or\nother drugs.\n * NB Effective and Repealed July 1, 2019\n 7-a. A licensed physician may prescribe and order a patient specific\norder or non-patient specific order to a licensed pharmacist, pursuant\nto regulations promulgated by the commissioner in consultation with the\ncommissioner of health, and consistent with the public health law, for\ndispensing up to a seven day starter pack of HIV post-exposure\nprophylaxis for the purpose of preventing human immunodeficiency virus\ninfection following a potential human immunodeficiency virus exposure.\n 8. Nothing in this article shall prohibit the provision of\npsychotherapy as defined in subdivision two of section eighty-four\nhundred one of this title to the extent permissible within the scope of\npractice of medicine, by any not-for-profit corporation or education\ncorporation providing services within the state of New York and\noperating under a waiver pursuant to section sixty-five hundred three-a\nof this title, provided that such entities offering such psychotherapy\nservices shall only provide such services through an individual\nappropriately licensed or otherwise authorized to provide such services\nor a professional entity authorized by law to provide such services.\n