§ 2999-R — Other laws

§ 2999-r. Other laws. 1. (a) It is the policy of the state to permit\nand encourage cooperative, collaborative and integrative arrangements\namong third-party health care payers and health care providers who might\notherwise be competitors under the active supervision of the\ncommissioner. To the extent that it is necessary to accomplish the\npurposes of this article, competition may be supplanted and the state\nmay provide state action immunity under state and federal antitrust laws\nto payors and health care providers.\n (b) The commissioner shall engage in state supervision to promote\nstate action immunity under state and federal antitrust laws and may\ninspect, require, or request additional documentation and take other\nactions under this article to verify and make sure that this article is\nimplemented in accordance with its intent and purpose.\n 2. With respect to the planning, implementation, and operation of\nACOs, the commissioner, by regulation, shall specifically delineate safe\nharbors that exempt ACOs from the application of the following statutes:\n (a) article twenty-two of the general business law relating to\narrangements and agreements in restraint of trade;\n (b) article one hundred thirty-one-A of the education law relating to\nfee-splitting arrangements; and\n (c) title two-D of article two of this chapter relating to health care\npractitioner referrals.\n 3. For the purposes of this article, an ACO shall be deemed to be a\nhospital for purposes of sections twenty-eight hundred five-j,\ntwenty-eight hundred five-k, twenty-eight hundred five-l and\ntwenty-eight hundred five-m of this chapter and subdivisions three and\nfive of section sixty-five hundred twenty-seven of the education law.\n 4. The commissioner is authorized to seek federal grants, approvals,\nand waivers to implement this article, including federal financial\nparticipation under public health coverage. The commissioner shall\nprovide copies of applications and other documents, including drafts,\nsubmitted to the federal government seeking such federal grants,\napprovals, and waivers to the chairs of the senate finance committee,\nthe assembly ways and means committee, and the senate and assembly\nhealth committees simultaneously with their submission to the federal\ngovernment.\n 5. The commissioner may directly, or by contract with not-for-profit\norganizations, provide:\n (a) consumer assistance to patients served by an ACO as to matters\nrelating to ACOs;\n (b) technical and other assistance to health care providers\nparticipating in an ACO as to matters relating to the ACO;\n (c) assistance to ACOs to promote their formation and improve their\noperation, including assistance under section twenty-eight hundred\neighteen of this chapter; and\n (d) information sharing and other assistance among ACOs to improve the\noperation of ACOs.\n