N.Y. PBH Law § 2899-F — New York Code / Act PBH / Article 28-F / Section 2899-F
Attending physician responsibilities
Status: in_force

* § 2899-f. Attending physician responsibilities. 1. Upon a patient's\nrequest for a medical aid-in-dying prescription, the attending physician\nshall examine the patient in person and the patient's relevant medical\nrecords, provided, however, that the attending physician may waive the\nin-person examination requirement and conduct the examination via\ntelehealth if the physician determines, within reasonable medical\njudgment, and documents in the patient's medical record that requiring\nan in-person visit would result in extraordinary hardship to the\npatient. For purposes of this subdivision, the term "extraordinary\nhardship" shall mean circumstances in which an in-person examination\nwould cause the patient undue pain or suffering, or would necessitate\nextraordinary expense or logistical burden for medically-necessary\ntransportation. In such cases, the examination may be conducted via\ntelehealth once the attending physician affirms that all other\nrequirements of this article have been fulfilled. The attending\nphysician shall also:\n  (a) make a determination of whether a patient has a terminal illness\nor condition, has decision-making capacity, has made an informed\ndecision and has made the request voluntarily of the patient's own\nvolition and without coercion;\n  (b) inform the patient of the requirement under this article for\nconfirmation by a consulting physician, and refer the patient to a\nconsulting physician upon the patient's request;\n  (c) inform the patient of the requirement under this article for\nconfirmation by a mental health professional, and refer the patient to a\nmental health professional upon the patient's request;\n  (d) provide information and counseling under section twenty-nine\nhundred ninety-seven-c of this chapter, provided, however, that if the\nattending physician is not willing or does not feel qualified to provide\nthe patient with information and counseling under this paragraph, the\nattending physician may arrange for another physician to do so, or shall\nrefer or transfer the patient to another physician willing to do so;\n  (e) ensure that the patient is making an informed decision by\ndiscussing with the patient: (i) the patient's medical diagnosis and\nprognosis; (ii) the potential risks associated with taking the\nmedication to be prescribed; (iii) the probable result of taking the\nmedication to be prescribed; (iv) the possibility that the patient may\nchoose to obtain the medication but not take it; (v) the feasible\nalternatives and appropriate treatment options, including but not\nlimited to (1) information and counseling regarding palliative and\nhospice care and end-of-life options appropriate to the patient,\nincluding but not limited to: the range of options appropriate to the\npatient; the prognosis, risks and benefits of the various options; and\nthe patient's legal rights to comprehensive pain and symptom management\nat the end of life; and (2) information regarding treatment options\nappropriate to the patient, including the prognosis, risks and benefits\nof the various treatment options;\n  (f) offer to refer the patient for other appropriate treatment\noptions, including but not limited to palliative care and hospice care;\n  (g) provide health literate and culturally appropriate educational\nmaterial regarding hospice and palliative care that has been prepared by\nthe department in consultation with representatives of hospice and\npalliative care providers from all regions of New York state, and that\nis available on the department's website for access and download,\nprovided, however, an otherwise eligible patient cannot be denied care\nunder this article if these materials are not developed by the effective\ndate of this article;\n  (h) discuss with the patient the importance of:\n  (i) having another person present when the patient takes the\nmedication and the restriction that no person other than the patient may\nadminister the medication;\n  (ii) not taking the medication in a public place; and\n  (iii) informing the patient's family of the patient's decision to\nrequest and take medication that will end the patient's life; a patient\nwho declines or is unable to notify family shall not have such patient's\nrequest for medication denied for that reason;\n  (i) inform the patient that such patient may rescind the request for\nmedication at any time and in any manner;\n  (j) fulfill the medical record documentation requirements of section\ntwenty-eight hundred ninety-nine-j of this article; and\n  (k) ensure that all appropriate steps are carried out in accordance\nwith this article before writing a prescription for medication.\n  2. Upon receiving confirmation from a consulting physician and mental\nhealth professional under section twenty-eight hundred ninety-nine-h of\nthis article and section twenty-eight hundred ninety-nine-i of this\narticle, respectively, the attending physician who determines that the\npatient has a terminal illness or condition, has decision-making\ncapacity and has made a voluntary request for medication as provided in\nthis article, may personally, or by referral to another physician,\nprescribe or order appropriate medication in accordance with the\npatient's request under this article, and at the patient's request,\nfacilitate the filling of the prescription and delivery of the\nmedication to the patient.\n  3. A prescription for medication shall not be filled until five days\nafter the prescription has been written, unless the patient's attending\nphysician has medically confirmed that the qualified individual may,\nwithin reasonable medical judgment, die before the expiration of the\nwaiting period identified herein, in which case, the prescription may be\nfilled once the attending physician affirms that all other requirements\npursuant to this article have been fulfilled. Such prescription must\nindicate the date and time that the prescription for medication was\nwritten and indicate the first allowable date and time when it may be\nfilled.\n  4. In accordance with the direction of the prescribing or ordering\nphysician and the consent of the patient, the patient may\nself-administer the medication to themselves. A health care professional\nor other person shall not administer the medication to the patient.\n  * NB Effective August 5, 2026\n