NY Pub Health L § 409-C (2021)
2021 New York Laws PBH - Public Health Article 4 - Property and Hospitals in the Department of Health Title 1 - General Provisions 409-C - Powers and Duties of the Commissioner; Administrative and Fiscal Functions.

§  409-c.  Powers  and  duties of the commissioner; administrative and fiscal  functions.  1.  Notwithstanding  the  provisions   of   sections forty-four,  forty-nine,  fifty, fifty-one and ninety-three of the state finance law, section nine of the  public  buildings  law  or  any  other provision  of  law  to  the contrary, the commissioner is authorized and empowered:  (a) to expend all lump sum or consolidated  appropriations  and  other appropriations  made  for  the  institutional  program. Within aggregate funds available for  expenditures,  the  state  comptroller  shall  draw warrants  for  the payment of all vouchers approved by the commissioner, or by such person as shall be designated by the commissioner by  a  rule or  written direction filed with the state comptroller. Such lump sum or consolidated  appropriations  made  for   personal   service,   or   for maintenance  and  operation  or for non-personal service, or maintenance undistributed including personal service, other than appropriations from proprietary or fiduciary funds, shall  be  available  for  payments  for personal  service,  or  maintenance  and  operation  or for non-personal service, or for maintenance  undistributed  including  personal  service upon  the filing of a schedule of positions and salaries and the amounts to be available for other personal service classes of  expenditure,  and for  the  expenses  of  maintenance  and  operation, or for non-personal service with the director of the budget, chairman of the senate  finance committee,  chairman  of  the assembly ways and means committee, and the state comptroller. Any such schedule may be amended and  such  amendment shall  be  filed with the officers named above. The state comptroller is authorized to pay any amounts required  for  the  salaries  and  related employment  benefits  of employees of the institutional program from any appropriations available therefor.  (b) To increase or decrease capital projects  fund  appropriations  by transfer or interchange as follows:  (i)  Amounts appropriated for the programs or purposes or for any item or items within such programs or purposes of the  institutional  program in   the   department   from  a  particular  fund  or  funds,  excluding appropriations for major  new  facility  construction  or  comprehensive facility  renovation  or modernization projects, in a fiscal year may be interchanged between items within the same program  or  purposes  of  an institution,  or with other items appropriated from such fund not in the same program or purpose within an institution, but which  are  contained in  the  state comptroller's classification of items as last promulgated pursuant to a certificate  of  allocation.  Such  certificate  shall  be submitted by the commissioner to the state comptroller with copies to be sent to the chairs of the senate finance committee and the assembly ways and  means  committee  and  the director of the budget for informational purposes only.   2.  (a)  Notwithstanding  any  inconsistent   provision   of   section ninety-three  of the state finance law or any other law to the contrary, any capital projects fund  appropriation  for  state  hospitals  in  the department  shall  be  available  to  the  department upon issuance of a certificate of approval of availability by the director of  the  budget. The certificate shall be for so much as shall be necessary to accomplish the  purposes described in the report from the department specifying the scope of the project and the project budget within  the  limits  of  the appropriation  and a copy of such certificate of approval shall be filed with the state comptroller, the chair of the  senate  finance  committee and  the  chair  of  the  assembly  ways  and means committee. Moneys so approved shall be paid on the audit and warrant of the state comptroller pursuant to vouchers approved by the commissioner.  (b) Notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of section nine of  the public  buildings  law  or  any  other  law  to  the  contrary, when the commissioner shall determine that there is a construction emergency,  as defined in section nine of the public buildings law, the commissioner is empowered  and  authorized to exceed the limit of forty thousand dollars but not to exceed the limit of two hundred  thousand  dollars  for  such project  and  may  utilize  any  capital projects fund appropriation for state hospitals within the department for  the  purposes  of  addressing such construction emergency.   3.  The  commissioner  shall  provide the chairs of the senate finance committee and the assembly ways and means committee and the director  of the  budget  with:  (i) quarterly reports of all expenditures within the institutional program pursuant to this section on the fifteenth  day  of July,  October, January and April of each year; and (ii) a report on the health care  activities  of  the  facilities  within  the  institutional program  pursuant to this section and their participation in health care delivery networks, either  directly  or  under  contract  on  or  around submission  of  the  annual  budget  request, but in no event later than October fifteenth of each year. This report  shall  provide  information regarding:  the  impact  of existing managed care contracts on services, census levels, operational costs and revenue; and the impact of  planned expansion  of  existing  managed  care  networks,  including anticipated changes in service areas, census, operating costs and revenue  projected as a result of such expansion.   4. Notwithstanding any provision of section one hundred sixty-three of the  state  finance  law  or  any  other  law, rule or regulation to the contrary, the commissioner may:  (a) authorize contracts with public, non-profit or  business  entities for  the  provision  of  general comprehensive and specialty health care services in department inpatient or  outpatient  hospitals,  clinics  or other  ancillary facilities, as defined in section four hundred three of this  title,  through  managed  care  networks  or  other  health   care contractual  arrangements  for  the  provision  of health care services. Consistent with applicable laws and regulations, the commissioner  shall develop  policies concerning the terms and conditions for such contracts including length of term, contributions,  evidence  of  insurance,  risk assumption  and  indemnification.  Health  care  services to be provided under such contracts may be delivered directly by state hospitals in the department, as defined in section four hundred three of this title,  or, with  respect  to  health  care services not provided by such hospitals, through contract, agreement or other  arrangement  with  physicians  and other  health  practitioners and providers or professional corporations, not-for-profit or business entities comprised thereof. Contracts for the provision of health care services hereunder:  (i)  shall  be  consistent with  applicable provisions of agreements between the state and employee organizations pursuant to article fourteen of  the  civil  service  law; (ii)  may  be entered into without formal competitive bidding subject to the policies of the commissioner which shall  include  requirements  for comparative review or other competitive processes where appropriate; and (iii)  shall  not  increase operating costs above resulting increases in revenue such that expenditures related to services provided pursuant  to such contracts will be limited to revenues projected to be received over the  life of the contract. Before entering into any contract pursuant to this paragraph, the commissioner shall provide a  written  assurance  to the  director  of  the  budget  that  such contract will not require any additional resources from  the  state  of  New  York  not  supported  by contract  revenues,  based  on  the  projected  financial  and  economic  analyses of the proposed contract submitted by the  facility,  including relevant assumptions regarding the projection.   * (b)  notwithstanding section one hundred twelve of the state finance law to the contrary, authorize contracts for the purchase of  goods  and services  for  state  hospitals in the department, as defined in section four hundred three of this title, without prior review and  approval  of any other state office or agency and subject to the commissioner's rules and  regulations: (i) for any contract which does not exceed one hundred thousand dollars; or (ii) for joint  or  group  purchasing  arrangements which   do   not  exceed  three  hundred  thousand  dollars.  The  state comptroller shall have ninety  days  to  review  arrangements  over  the limitations  prescribed  pursuant  to  this subparagraph. Purchases made pursuant to such  joint  or  group  purchasing  arrangements  shall  not include  services  and be made from contracts awarded by a regionally or nationally recognized purchasing  organization,  and  contracts  with  a regionally  or  nationally  recognized  purchasing organization shall be made on a competitive basis.   * NB Repealed January 1, 2024  (c) authorize contracts for the participation by  state  hospitals  in the  department, as defined in section four hundred three of this title, in joint and cooperative programs and arrangements for the  delivery  of health  care  services,  or for the planning and administration thereof, with public, non-profit or business  entities,  including  programs  and arrangements on a regional or national basis.  (d) authorize the department to: (i) lease, sublease or otherwise make available  in  accordance  with  the  commissioner's  policies, space or facilities within its hospitals, as  defined  in  section  four  hundred three  of this title, to one or more practitioners or public, non-profit or business entities for the purposes specified in  paragraphs  (a)  and (c)  of this subdivision; or (ii) to lease or sublease any facilities or other property necessary for the delivery of  health  care  services  in accordance  with  the  provisions  of  paragraphs  (a)  and  (b) of this subdivision.  (e) nothing contained in this subdivision shall in any  way  alter  or impair   the   rights  provided  pursuant  to  a  collective  bargaining agreement, state  law  implementing  such  agreement  or  under  article fourteen of the civil service law of all members of certified bargaining units currently or hereafter employed by the department in hospitals, as defined  in  section four hundred three of this title, and all certified employee organizations and negotiating units  of  such  employees  shall continue  in  accordance  with the provisions of article fourteen of the civil service law. The commissioner shall assure that  any  contract  or agreement  entered  into  for the provision of general comprehensive and specialty health care services in department hospitals,  as  defined  in section  four  hundred  three  of  this  title, through participation in managed care networks  or  other  joint  and  cooperative  programs  and arrangements  including  those on a regional basis in fulfillment of any provision of this subdivision, the service of which is being provided by department employees at hospitals defined in section four hundred  three of  this  title  who  are  members of certified bargaining units at such hospital will be subject to the terms and conditions of any  current  or future collectively negotiated agreement between the state and certified employee organizations pursuant to article fourteen of the civil service law.   5.  The  commissioner  shall  submit  a  report  to  the governor, the temporary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly  and  the office  of  the  state  comptroller on or before May first, two thousand two, which shall include a record of all group purchasing  arrangements,  including  for  each  group  purchasing  arrangement:  the  name  of the purchasing  organization,  overall  contract  amount,  dollar  value  of purchases made by fiscal year, description of the commodities purchased, and  methodology  used  to  determine  the  cost  effectiveness  of such purchase.