Requires the New York city department of corrections and the New York city health and hospitals corporation to adopt safety policies to protect health care…

Showing the cosponsors who are on Agora, A to Z. The official record may list more.

• Democratic1

Shown in neutral colors by design; Agora is non-partisan.

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Luis R. Sepúlveda says this is needed

Health care professionals working in and with the Department of Corrections (DOCS), Correctional Health Services (CHS) of NYC Health & Hospitals (H+H) want the ability to deliver timely and quality care to detainees and to be able to work through our shift without being assaulted or killed. There is a vital shortage of correction officers, a failure to properly assign correction officers and a failure and inability of the Department of Corrections (DOC) and Correctional Health Services (CHS) of Health & Hospitals (H+H) to ensure existing policies are adhered to and to estab- lish new ones to address the growing health and safety crisis confront- ing health care workers that also impairs the ability of detainees to receive needed care in a timely manner. There is a rising number of health care workers who are working every shift afraid for their lives, health and safety, and of being harmed. These health care professionals need to see immediate action and changes made in how inmates are scheduled for medical care visitations and how they are supervised during these health care visits. Meetings by representatives of these health care workers have met with representatives of NY City, DOC and CHS but not enough is being done to protect them from the dangerous conditions at Rikers Island and to ensure that the detainees receive timely health care services. Doctors have urged and continue to urge for effective measures now before a medical staff member gets injured or killed. Currently, health care professionals are yelled at, cursed at, spit at, threatened and assaulted. These are tough conditions to work under and deliver quality care in. The growing health and safety crisis confronting health care workers also impairs the ability of inmates to receive needed care in a timely manner. New admissions are not being processed in a timely manner because there is no officer in the clinic. Detainees are not brought in for medical follow up, nursing care, dental, wound care, medical and mental health follow up. Detainees are not going to X-ray and specialty clinics due to shortage of correction officers. Mental Health detainees have delayed wait times in the pen with no mattress, unsanitary conditions and some- times no medications. Suggestions for improvement to the current system have met with responses from DOC and New York City that state that they cannot or will not make any change or that they admit they violated their own existing safety policies but there is no clear accountability. This legislation seeks to set up a mechanism to quickly address these problems while providing impacted health care professionals with direct input into existing policies and proposed safety protocols on a routine basis. This legislation furthers the incentive for impacted agencies to address the safety lapses and workplace safety rules and regulations through strict enforcement by giving health care workers the right of action against the negligence of supervising entities.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.