2023 New York Laws › SOS - Social Services › Article 11 - Protection of People With Special Needs › 496 - Confidentiality.

§  496.  Confidentiality.  1.  Unless  an  investigation  of  a report
conducted  pursuant  to  this  article  has  been   substantiated,   all
information, including information identifying the subject of the report
and  other persons named in the report, shall be sealed forthwith by the
vulnerable persons' central register, the state oversight agency and the
facility or provider agency. Such reports may only be unsealed and  made
available,  consistent  with  any other applicable state or federal law,
to:
(a) the state agency operating, licensing or certifying a facility  or
program  for  the  purpose  of  monitoring or licensing such facility or
program;
(b) any state agency operating, licensing, or certifying a facility or
provider agency when  investigating  a  report  of  suspected  abuse  or
neglect  involving the subject of a previously sealed report accepted by
the vulnerable persons' central register;
(c) the subject of the report;
(d) a court of relevant jurisdiction or  a  law  enforcement  official
when  such  court  or  official verifies that the report is necessary to
conduct an  active  investigation  or  prosecution  of  a  violation  of
subdivision four of section 240.50 of the penal law;
(e)  the  justice  center  medical  review  board, for the purposes of
preparing a fatality report pursuant to section five  hundred  fifty-six
of the executive law;
(f)  the  independent agency designated pursuant to subdivision (b) of
section five hundred fifty-eight of the  executive  law,  provided  that
such  information  is relevant to a matter within the legal authority of
such agency; or
(g) other persons named in  the  report,  as  defined  in  subdivision
thirteen  of  section  four  hundred  eighty-eight of this article which
includes, but  is  not  limited  to,  the  service  recipient's  parent,
guardian  or other person legally responsible for such person; provided,
however, that the names and other personally identifying information  of
custodians  and  other  service  recipients shall not be included unless
such   custodians   and   service   recipients   authorize   disclosure.
Notwithstanding  the  prohibitions  on non-redisclosure set forth in the
closing sentence of this subdivision, the service  recipient,  and  such
service recipient's parent, guardian or other person legally responsible
for  such  service  recipient  may disclose information and reports made
available pursuant to this paragraph  to  an  attorney,  who  shall  not
further  disclose  except  as  is  necessary for use by such attorney in
rendering advice, assistance and representation.
When a report  is  unsealed,  persons  given  access  to  it  shall  not
redisclose  such reports except as necessary to conduct such appropriate
investigation or prosecution and shall request that the court redact any
copies of such reports produced in any court proceeding  to  remove  the
names  of  those persons irrelevant to the proceeding such as the source
of the report, the name of the subject, and other persons named  in  the
reports;  or  that  the court issue an order protecting the names of the
subjects and other persons named in the reports from public disclosure.
2. Reports made pursuant to this article and found to be substantiated
as  well  as  any  other  information  obtained,  reports   written   or
photographs  taken  concerning  such  reports  in  the possession of the
justice center, a  state  oversight  agency,  a  delegate  investigatory
entity,  facility  or  provider  agency covered by this article shall be
confidential and shall not  be  disclosed  to  any  other  party  unless
authorized  pursuant  to  this  section or any other applicable state or
federal law. In the event that other applicable  state  or  federal  law
provisions are more restrictive than the provisions of this section, the

provisions of such other state or federal law shall apply. In accordance
with this section, such information shall be made available only to:
(a) a person who is the subject of the report;
(b)  other  persons  named  in  the report, which includes, but is not
limited to, the service recipient's parent,  guardian  or  other  person
legally responsible for such person. Notwithstanding the prohibitions on
non-redisclosure  set  forth  in  subdivision  four of this section, the
service recipient, and such  service  recipient's  parent,  guardian  or
other person legally responsible for such service recipient may disclose
information  and reports made available pursuant to this paragraph to an
attorney, who shall not further disclose except as is necessary for  use
by such attorney in rendering advice, assistance and representation;
(c) the justice center;
(d) the applicable state oversight agency, the director or operator of
the  applicable  facility  or  provider  agency and, as appropriate, the
local social services commissioner, the commissioner of  the  office  of
children and family services, or the school district placing the service
recipient,  or  an  agency  providing  adult  protective services to the
service recipient;
(e) a physician who has before him or her a service recipient whom  he
or she reasonably suspects may be or may have been abused or neglected;
(f)  a  court,  upon  a  finding that the information in the record is
relevant to the determination of an issue before the court;
(g) a grand jury, upon a finding that the information in the record is
necessary for the determination of charges before the grand jury;
(h)  any  appropriate  state  legislative  committee  responsible  for
legislation  affecting  vulnerable  persons,  provided, however, that no
information identifying or tending  to  identify  the  subjects  of  the
report or other persons named in the report shall be made available;
(i)  any  person  engaged  in  a bona fide research purpose; provided,
however, that no information identifying  or  tending  to  identify  the
subjects  of  the  report  or other persons named in the report shall be
made available to the researcher unless it is  absolutely  essential  to
the research purpose and the justice center, after consultation with the
commissioner  of  the  applicable  state  oversight  agency, gives prior
approval;
(j) a facility or provider agency,  other  providers  of  services  to
vulnerable  persons  in  programs  licensed  or  certified  by any state
oversight agency, or any other provider agency as defined in subdivision
three of section  four  hundred  twenty-four-a  of  this  chapter  or  a
licensing  agency as defined in subdivision four of section four hundred
twenty-four-a of this chapter, in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of
subdivision two of section four hundred ninety-five of this article;
(k) a probation service regarding a person about whom it is conducting
an  investigation  pursuant  to  article  three  hundred  ninety  of the
criminal procedure law, or a probation  service  or  the  department  of
corrections  and  community  supervision  regarding a person to whom the
service or department is providing supervision pursuant to article sixty
of the penal law or article eight  of  the  correction  law,  where  the
service or department requests the information upon a certification that
such  information  is necessary to conduct its investigation, that there
is reasonable cause to believe that the subject of an  investigation  is
the subject of a substantiated report and that there is reasonable cause
to  believe  that such records are necessary to the investigation by the
probation service  or  the  department,  provided,  however,  that  only
substantiated reports shall be furnished pursuant to this subdivision;
(l)   a   district   attorney,   an  assistant  district  attorney  or
investigator employed by the office of  a  district  attorney,  a  sworn

officer  of  the  division  of  state police, of the regional state park
police, of a city police department, or of a  county,  town  or  village
police  department or county sheriff's office or department upon written
verification  that  such  information is necessary to conduct a criminal
investigation or criminal prosecution of a person,  and  that  there  is
reasonable cause to believe that such person is the subject of a report;
provided,  however,  that  only substantiated reports shall be furnished
pursuant to this subdivision;
(m) the New York city department of investigation; provided,  however,
that  no  information  identifying  the  subjects of the report or other
persons named in the report shall be made available to the department of
investigation unless such information is essential to  an  investigation
within  the  legal  authority of the department of investigation and the
justice center or the applicable  state  oversight  agency  gives  prior
approval;
(n)  a  provider  or  coordinator  of  services to which a facility or
provider agency or social  services  district  has  referred  a  service
recipient  or  a  service  recipient's  family  or  to  whom the service
recipient or the recipient's family  have  referred  themselves  at  the
request  of  such  agency or social services district, when said service
recipient is reported to the vulnerable persons' central register as the
vulnerable person and when the records, reports or other information are
necessary to  enable  the  provider  or  coordinator  to  establish  and
implement  a  plan  of  service for the service recipient or the service
recipient's family, or to monitor  the  provision  and  coordination  of
services  and the circumstances of the service recipient and the service
recipient's family, or to directly provide services in  accordance  with
requirements established by the applicable state oversight agency to the
extent  that the sharing of such information is not otherwise prohibited
by federal law; provided, however, a provider or coordinator of services
given access to information concerning a service recipient  pursuant  to
this  paragraph  shall  be  authorized to redisclose such information to
other persons or agencies which also provide  services  to  the  service
recipient  or  the  service  recipient's family only if an agreement has
been or will be reached between the provider or coordinator  of  service
and  such  facility  or provider agency, operating state agency or local
district. An agreement entered into pursuant  to  this  paragraph  shall
include  the  specific  agencies  and  categories of individuals to whom
redisclosure by the provider or coordinator of services  is  authorized.
Persons  or  agencies  given  access  to  information  pursuant  to this
paragraph may exchange such  information  in  order  to  facilitate  the
provision  or  coordination  of services to the service recipient or the
service recipient's family;
(o) a disinterested person making an investigation pursuant to section
one hundred sixteen of the domestic relations law,  provided  that  such
disinterested  person  shall only make this information available to the
judge before whom the adoption proceeding is pending;
(p) a criminal justice agency conducting an investigation of a missing
child or vulnerable adult where there is reason to  suspect  information
in  a  substantiated report under this article is needed to further such
investigation;
(q) the director or operator of the facility or provider  agency  and,
as  appropriate, the local social services commissioner, commissioner of
the office of children and family services, or school district placing a
child in that program, the applicable executive  agency,  and,  for  any
report  involving abuse or neglect of a child, any attorney appointed to
represent the child whose appointment has been  continued  by  a  family
court  judge  during  the  term  of  the  placement  and  subject to the

limitations contained  in  section  four  hundred  ninety-five  of  this
article;
(r)  for  any  report  alleging  abuse  or neglect of a child, a child
protective service of another state when such service certifies that the
records and reports are necessary in order to conduct a child  abuse  or
maltreatment investigation within its jurisdiction of the subject of the
report   and  shall  only  be  used  for  purposes  of  conducting  such
investigation and will not be redisclosed to any other person or agency;
(s) an attorney  for  a  child,  appointed  pursuant  to  section  one
thousand  sixteen  of the family court act, at any time such appointment
is in effect, in relation to any report in which the respondent  in  the
proceeding  in  which  the  attorney  for  the child is appointed is the
subject or another person named in the report, pursuant to sections  one
thousand  thirty-nine-a and one thousand fifty-two-a of the family court
act;
(t) officers and employees of the state comptroller, for purposes of a
duly authorized performance audit, provided that such comptroller  shall
have  certified  to  the  keeper  of  such  records  that  he or she has
instituted procedures developed in consultation with the justice  center
to limit access to service recipient-identifiable information to persons
requiring   such   information  for  purposes  of  the  audit  and  that
appropriate controls and prohibitions are imposed on  the  dissemination
of  service  recipient-identifiable information contained in the conduct
of the audit.
(i)  Information  pertaining  to  the  substance  or  content  of  any
psychological,  psychiatric,  therapeutic,  clinical or medical reports,
evaluations  or  like  materials  or  information  pertaining  to   such
vulnerable person or such person's family shall not be made available to
such  officers  and  employees  unless disclosure of such information is
absolutely essential to the specific  audit  activity  and  the  justice
center gives prior written approval.
(ii)   Any   failure   to  maintain  the  confidentiality  of  service
recipient-identifiable information shall  subject  such  comptroller  or
officer  to  denial  of any further access to records until such time as
the audit agency has reviewed its  procedures  concerning  controls  and
prohibitions  imposed  on  the dissemination of such information and has
taken all reasonable and appropriate steps to eliminate such  lapses  in
maintaining  confidentiality  to the satisfaction of the justice center.
Such justice center shall establish the grounds for denial of access  to
records  contained under this section and shall recommend as necessary a
plan of remediation to the audit agency.  Except  as  provided  in  this
section, nothing in this subparagraph shall be construed as limiting the
powers  of such comptroller or officer to access records which he or she
is otherwise authorized to audit or obtain under  any  other  applicable
provision of law;
(u)  an  entity  with  appropriate legal authority in another state to
license, certify or otherwise approve prospective  foster  and  adoptive
parents where disclosure of information regarding the prospective foster
or  adoptive parents and other persons over the age of eighteen residing
in the home of such prospective parents is required by paragraph  twenty
of subdivision (a) of section six hundred seventy-one of title forty-two
of the United States Code;
(v)  a  social services official who is investigating whether an adult
is in need of protective services in accordance with the  provisions  of
section four hundred seventy-three of this chapter or a child is in need
of  child protective services pursuant to the provisions of title six of
article six of this chapter, when such official has reasonable cause  to

believe  that  such  reports  and  information are needed to further the
present investigation;
(w)  for  reports  alleging abuse or neglect of children, members of a
citizen review panel as established pursuant to  section  three  hundred
seventy-one-b of this chapter; provided, however, such members shall not
disclose   to  any  person  or  governmental  official  any  identifying
information which the panel has been provided and shall not make  public
other information unless otherwise authorized by statute;
(x)  officers  and  employees  of  the education department and, where
applicable, the department of health, for the purpose  of  investigating
charges  and maintaining professional discipline proceedings against the
professional license of the subject of the report pursuant to Title VIII
of the education law, and to employees of the education  department  for
the   purpose  of  investigating  charges  and  maintaining  good  moral
character proceedings against  the  teaching,  school  administrator  or
school leader certificate or license of the subject of the report; and
(y)  the  independent agency designated pursuant to subdivision (b) of
section five hundred fifty-eight of the  executive  law,  provided  that
such  information  is relevant to a matter within the legal authority of
such agency.
3. (a) The executive director, in  consultation  with  the  applicable
state  oversight  agency may disclose information regarding the abuse or
neglect of a vulnerable person as set forth in this subdivision, and the
investigation thereof and any services related thereto, to persons other
than those authorized to receive records under subdivision two  of  this
section  if  otherwise  permitted by applicable federal law and if he or
she determines that such disclosure shall not be contrary  to  the  best
interests  of the vulnerable person and any one of the following factors
are present:
(i) the subject of the  report  has  been  charged  in  an  accusatory
instrument with committing a crime related to a report maintained in the
vulnerable persons' central register; or
(ii)  the  investigation  of  the  abuse  or neglect of the vulnerable
person or the provision of services by the facility or  provider  agency
has  been publicly disclosed in a report required to be disclosed in the
course of  their  official  duties,  by  a  law  enforcement  agency  or
official,  a  district  attorney, any other state or local investigative
agency or official, or by judge of the unified court system; or
(iii) there has been a prior knowing, voluntary, public disclosure  by
an  individual  concerning  a  report  of abuse or neglect in which such
individual is named as the subject of the report; or
(iv) the vulnerable person named in the report has died or the  report
involves  the  near fatality of a vulnerable person. For the purposes of
this  section,  "near  fatality"  means  an  act  that  results  in  the
vulnerable  person being placed, as certified by a physician, in serious
or critical condition.
(b)  For  the  purposes  of  this  subdivision,  only  the   following
information may be disclosed:
(i) the name of the abused or neglected vulnerable person;
(ii)  the  determination  by  the justice center and the findings upon
which such determination was based;
(iii) identification of services provided or actions,  if  any,  taken
regarding  the  vulnerable  person  named  in  the report and his or her
family as a result of any such report or reports;
(iv) whether any report of abuse or neglect regarding such  vulnerable
person has been "substantiated" as maintained by the vulnerable persons'
central register;
(v) any actions taken by the state oversight agency or the facility or
provider  agency  in  response  to  reports  of  abuse or neglect of the
vulnerable person to the vulnerable persons' central register, including
but not limited to actions taken after each and every report of abuse or
neglect of such person and the dates of such reports; and
(vi)   any  extraordinary  or  pertinent  information  concerning  the
circumstances of the abuse or neglect of the vulnerable person  and  the
investigation  thereof,  where  the  executive director, in consultation
with  the  commissioner  of  the  applicable  state   oversight   agency
determines such disclosure is consistent with the public interest.
(c)  Information  may  be  disclosed  pursuant  to this subdivision as
follows:
(i) information released prior to the completion of the  investigation
of  a  report  shall  be  limited to a statement that a report is "under
investigation";
(ii) when there has been a prior disclosure pursuant to paragraph  (a)
of  this  subdivision,  information  released  in  a  case  in which the
investigation of the report has been completed  but  not  substantiated,
information  shall  be  limited to the statement that "the investigation
has been completed and the report has been unsubstantiated";
(iii) if the report has been "substantiated" then information  may  be
released pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subdivision.
(d)  Any  disclosure of information pursuant to this subdivision shall
be consistent with the provisions of paragraph (b) of this  subdivision.
Such disclosure shall not identify or provide an identifying description
of  the  source  of  the  report, and shall not identify the name of the
abused or neglected vulnerable person's siblings or children, the parent
or other person legally responsible for such person or any other members
of such person's household.
(e) In determining, pursuant to paragraph  (a)  of  this  subdivision,
whether  disclosure  will  be  contrary  to  the  best  interests of the
vulnerable person, the executive director shall consider the interest in
privacy of the vulnerable person and such person's siblings or children,
the parent or other person legally responsible for such  person  or  any
other members of such person's household.
(f) Except as it applies directly to the cause of the abuse or neglect
of the vulnerable person, nothing in this subdivision shall be deemed to
authorize  the  release or disclosure of the substance or content of any
psychological, psychiatric, therapeutic, clinical  or  medical  reports,
evaluations  or  like materials or information pertaining to such person
or such person's family. Any such information that applies  directly  to
the  cause  of  the  abuse  or  neglect  of the vulnerable person may be
disclosed only if disclosure is not otherwise restricted  by  applicable
federal or state laws.
4. A person given access to the names or other information identifying
the subject of the report or other persons named in the report shall not
divulge  or make public such identifying information unless he or she is
a district attorney or other law enforcement official and the purpose is
to initiate court action or the disclosure is  necessary  in  connection
with the investigation or prosecution of the subject of the report for a
crime  alleged  to  have  been  committed by the subject against another
person named in the report. Nothing in this section shall  be  construed
to  permit  any  release,  disclosure  or identification of the names or
identifying descriptions of persons who have reported suspected abuse or
neglect to  the  vulnerable  persons'  central  register  or  the  state
oversight agency, facility or provider agency or other entity where such
persons  are  employed  or  with  which they are associated without such
persons' written permission except to persons, officials,  and  agencies

enumerated  in  paragraphs (f), (g), (l), (m) and (v) of subdivision two
of this section. To the extent that persons or agencies are given access
to information pursuant to paragraphs (c), (d), (e), (k), (l), (m),  (n)
and (p) of subdivision two of this section, such persons or agencies may
give  and  receive such information to each other in order to facilitate
an investigation conducted,  or  the  provision  of  services,  by  such
persons or agencies.
5.  Notwithstanding  any  contrary  provision  of this section, mental
hygiene legal service shall  have  access  to  all  information,  books,
records  and data as provided for in subdivision (d) of section 47.03 of
the mental hygiene law.