Ensures ovarian cancer survivors have the right to access screenings for health conditions.
Summary
This bill would add a new section to the Public Health Law establishing a right for people with a personal history of ovarian cancer to receive genetic testing and genomic tumor profiling. The measure specifies that such testing may not be denied and generally may not be limited by frequency caps or similar restrictions. It expressly includes testing for BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations, Lynch syndrome-associated mutations, rearrangement analysis of coding exons linked to ovarian cancer, and any additional mutations that a treating health care professional determines are medically necessary and appropriate.
The bill is aimed at ensuring ovarian cancer survivors can access screening and testing that may identify inherited germline mutations or acquired somatic mutations relevant to future health risks and treatment decisions. It would take effect immediately upon enactment and would create a statutory protection for access to these services under state law.
Impact
If enacted, the bill would amend the New York Public Health Law by creating section 2404-e and establishing a new legal entitlement for ovarian cancer survivors to obtain genetic testing and genomic tumor profiling. It would affect health insurers, providers, and testing access policies by prohibiting denials and limiting restrictions such as frequency caps for the specified tests. The practical impact would be to broaden access to hereditary cancer and tumor profiling services for individuals with a personal history of ovarian cancer.
Sentiment
The available bill materials suggest a supportive, patient-access-oriented measure with no recorded committee debate or votes in the provided context. The caption frames the bill as protecting ovarian cancer survivors’ right to screenings, indicating a health-care access rationale rather than a controversial policy change. Because there are no transcripts or voting records included, there is no evidence here of opposition or divided sentiment.
Contention
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials, since there are no committee transcripts or recorded votes. Potential areas of debate, based on the text alone, could include the cost of mandated testing, insurer coverage obligations, and how broadly medically necessary additional mutations should be interpreted by treating professionals. However, the bill text itself is focused on access and does not indicate any explicit disagreement among stakeholders.
Relates to ovarian cancer research; requires biennial reporting on recommendations from the health research and science board on the types of data that would be useful for ovarian cancer researchers.