S 4035: Allows for unlicensed individuals to collect throat or nasopharyngeal swab specimens and to perform certain nursing tasks during a state disaster emergency.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4035 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE January 31, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. SKOUFIS, LIU, RAMOS -- read twice and ordered print- ed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Higher Educa- tion AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to allowing for unli- censed individuals to collect throat or nasopharyngeal swab specimens and to perform certain nursing tasks during certain state of disaster emergencies The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 6526 of the education law is amended by adding a 2 new subdivision 11 to read as follows: 3 11. Any person in a declared state of disaster emergency for a disease 4 outbreak or epidemic, pursuant to section twenty-eight of the executive 5 law, shall be permitted, upon the successful completion of training 6 deemed adequate by the commissioner, to collect throat or nasopharyngeal 7 swab specimens from individuals suspected of being infected by an infec- 8 tious disease, for purposes of testing. The commissioner, in consulta- 9 tion with the commissioner of health, shall establish training require- 10 ments for unlicensed individuals to collect throat or nasopharyngeal 11 swab specimens. 12 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 6908 of the education law is amended by 13 adding a new paragraph i to read as follows: 14 i. As prohibiting in a declared state of disaster emergency for a 15 disease outbreak or epidemic, pursuant to section twenty-eight of the 16 executive law, to the extent necessary, non-nursing staff, upon the 17 successful completion of training deemed adequate by the commissioner, 18 to perform tasks, under the supervision of a nurse, otherwise limited to 19 the scope of practice of a licensed or registered nurse. The commis- 20 sioner, in consultation with the commissioner of health, shall establish 21 training requirements for non-nursing staff to perform the tasks permit- 22 ted by this paragraph. 23 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD07892-01-5