Governor Signs New Law To Enhance Safety Standards Of Office Based Surgical Procedures

On July 20th, Governor Spitzer signed new legislation intended to protect thousands of patients undergoing surgical procedures in physicians’ offices. The legislation will provide for appropriate patient safety standards regardless of whether a surgery is performed in a hospital, ambulatory surgery center, or a doctor’s office. Currently, surgeries performed in doctor’s offices are not regulated in New York State. Practitioners are not currently bound by the same credentialing and safety requirements as hospitals and are not required to report adverse outcomes. In addition, office based surgeries have doubled over the past decade, and such procedures have also become increasingly complicated and invasive. Thus, there was seen a need to increase patient safety. 

The new law:

• Requires office-based surgery be performed by physicians in a setting that has obtained and maintained accreditation from an entity approved by the state Health Commissioner.
• Requires that operating in an un-accredited setting would constitute professional medical misconduct.
• Requires physicians to report adverse office-based surgery events including patient deaths and unplanned hospital admissions within one business day to the Department of Health Patient Safety Center.
• Requires that individual reports be considered confidential and not be subject to the Freedom of Information Law or discovery.

In his Press Release, Governor Spitzer remarked, "We have a responsibility to protect public safety by ensuring that facilities that offer office-based surgeries meet rigorous safety standards.”

The legislation is based on recommendations made by the Committee on Quality Assurance in Office-Based Surgery in their Report of January 2007. The new legislation amends the Education Law and the Public Health Law by adding additional sections. The full text of the new legislation can be read by Clicking Here and searching on Bill Number: S6052-A