2023 New York Laws › MHY - Mental Hygiene › Title C - Developmental Disabilties Act › Article 16 - Regulation and Quality of Services › 16.34 - Certain Information Regarding Persons Working With People With Developmental Disabilities.

§ 16.34 Certain  information  regarding persons working with people with
developmental disabilities.
(a) Upon  a  request  to  the  justice  center  for  criminal  history
information  for a prospective employee or volunteer pursuant to section
eight hundred forty-five-b of the  executive  law,  the  justice  center
shall  notify  the  office,  and  if  the  office has available, after a
reasonably diligent search a substantiated report that  the  prospective
employee  or  volunteer  engaged  in  behavior that constituted abuse or
serious neglect  of  a  patient  or  consumer  in  a  program  licensed,
operated,  or  certified  by  the  office,  the office shall cause to be
furnished a summary of such report  or  reports  to  the  provider  that
requested  the criminal history information from the justice center with
respect to such prospective employee or  volunteer;  provided,  however,
summary reports provided shall be limited to substantiated reports based
on  investigations  that  commenced  prior to the effective date of this
section. Such summary report shall be provided to the authorized  person
as  defined in paragraph (b) of subdivision one of section eight hundred
forty-five-b of the executive law and at that same time the office shall
furnish such documents to the prospective employee or volunteer  at  the
address for such person listed on the request.
(b)  The  summary  report  provided  by  the  office  to a provider of
services pursuant to subdivision (a) of this section shall  be  received
by the provider subject to the confidentiality provisions of subdivision
seven of section eight hundred forty-five-b of the executive law.
(c)  For  the  purposes of this section the following terms shall have
the following meanings:
1. "abuse" shall mean physical abuse, sexual abuse,  or  psychological
abuse; and
2.  "serious  neglect"  shall  mean intentional acts or omissions that
endanger the life or health of a person receiving services.
3. "substantiated report" shall mean that,  after  investigation,  the
commission on quality care and advocacy for persons with disabilities or
the  office  has  determined,  in  writing,  that a report filed by such
commission, by the office, or by a provider  certified  by  the  office,
meets  the  criteria  of  abuse  or  serious neglect, as defined in this
section, of a patient or consumer in a program  licensed,  operated,  or
certified  by  the  office  and that the report and credible information
submitted support the relevant allegations in the report or  shall  mean
that  the prospective employee or volunteer was either found guilty in a
disciplinary proceeding, or there was a settlement  agreement  in  which
the prospective employee or volunteer admitted guilt.
(d) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted to limit the office's
ability   to   investigate   abuse,  neglect  or  maltreatment,  whether
intentional or unintentional, under current law or regulations.