A 9226: Enacts the "refuting false knowledge act" relating to establishing a medical misinformation task force within the department of health to combat medical misinformation provided by the federal government.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 9226 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY November 3, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. ROSENTHAL -- read once and referred to the Committee on Health AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to enacting the "refuting false knowledge act" The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as 2 the "refuting false knowledge act". 3 § 2. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 25 to 4 read as follows: 5 § 25. Medical misinformation task force. 1. There is hereby estab- 6 lished within the department a medical misinformation task force to 7 combat medical misinformation provided by the federal government. 8 2. (a) The medical misinformation task force shall consist of fifteen 9 members to be appointed by the governor, the speaker of the assembly, 10 and the temporary president of the senate, and such members shall serve 11 for terms of four years. 12 (b) Members of the medical misinformation task force shall have: 13 (i) demonstrated leadership at the national and/or state level in: 14 (1) the critical evaluation of research published in peer reviewed 15 literature and in the methods of evidence review; 16 (2) clinical prevention, health promotion and primary health care; 17 and/or 18 (3) implementation of evidence-based recommendations in clinical prac- 19 tice, including at the clinician-patient level, practice level, and 20 health system level; and 21 (ii) expertise in: 22 (1) health equity; 23 (2) communication in providing findings to multiple audiences; 24 (3) decision modeling; 25 (4) application of science to health policy; and EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD13828-03-5 
 A. 9226 2 1 (5) crisis management. 2 (c) Organizations may make nominations to the governor, the speaker of 3 the assembly, and the temporary president of the senate for individuals 4 to be appointed as members of the medical misinformation task force. All 5 such nominations shall include: 6 (i) the nominee's resume; 7 (ii) the nominee's address and contact information; 8 (iii) a description of how the nominee meets the qualifications for 9 members of the medical misinformation task force as enumerated in this 10 subdivision; and 11 (iv) a description of how the nominee would contribute to the task 12 force. 13 (d) All appointees to the medical misinformation task force shall fill 14 out a conflict of interest disclosure to eliminate potential profes- 15 sional or financial conflicts. 16 3. The medical misinformation task force shall create and issue guide- 17 lines on ways to communicate medical information to state agencies and 18 the public within ninety days of the creation of the medical misinforma- 19 tion task force. 20 4. The medical misinformation task force shall coordinate planned and 21 rapid response medical announcements and campaigns to the public and to 22 state and local agencies, organizations, hospitals, and clinics, in 23 response to medical misinformation provided by the federal government. 24 5. The medical misinformation task force shall aid in the creation and 25 dissemination of medical literacy information including, but not limited 26 to, pamphlets and social media and other online resources, that conform 27 to state health recommendations about topics including vaccine efficacy, 28 birth control, abortion care, fertility treatments, pregnancy, and other 29 medical information. 30 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.