N.Y.
Public Health Law Section 2899-D
Definitions
1.
“Adult” means an individual who is eighteen years of age or older.2.
“Attending physician” means the physician who has primary responsibility for the care of the patient and treatment of the patient’s terminal illness or condition.3.
“Decision-making capacity” means the ability to understand and appreciate the nature and consequences of health care decisions, including the benefits and risks of and alternatives to any proposed health care, including medical aid in dying, and to reach an informed decision.4.
“Consulting physician” means a physician who is qualified by specialty or experience to make a professional diagnosis and prognosis regarding a patient’s terminal illness or condition.5.
“Health care facility” means a general hospital, nursing home, or residential health care facility as defined in § 2801 (Definitions)section twenty-eight hundred one of this chapter, or a hospice as defined in § 4002 (Definitions)section four thousand two of this chapter.6.
“Health care provider” means an individual licensed, certified, or authorized by law to administer health care or dispense medication in the ordinary course of business or practice of a profession.7.
“Informed decision” means a decision by a patient who is suffering from a terminal illness or condition to request and obtain a prescription for medication that the patient may self-administer to end the patient’s life that is based on an understanding and acknowledgment of the relevant facts and that is made voluntarily, of the patient’s own volition and without coercion, after being fully informed of:(a)
the patient’s medical diagnosis and prognosis;(b)
the potential risks associated with taking the medication to be prescribed;(c)
the probable result of taking the medication to be prescribed;(d)
the possibility that the patient may choose not to obtain the medication, or may obtain the medication but may decide not to self-administer it; and(e)
the feasible alternatives and appropriate treatment options, including but not limited to palliative care and hospice care.8.
“Medical aid in dying” means the medical practice of a physician prescribing medication to a qualified individual that the individual may choose to self-administer to bring about death.9.
“Medically confirmed” means the medical opinion of the attending physician that a patient has a terminal illness or condition and has made an informed decision which has been confirmed by a consulting physician who has examined the patient and the patient’s relevant medical records.10.
“Medication” means medication prescribed by a physician under this article.11.
“Mental health professional” means an individual (a) licensed to practice medicine in New York state who is a diplomate of the American board of psychiatry and neurology or is eligible to be certified by that board or is certified by the American osteopathic board of neurology and psychiatry or is eligible to be certified by that board; or(b)
licensed to practice psychology under title eight of the education law.12.
“Palliative care” means health care treatment, including interdisciplinary end-of-life care, and consultation with patients and family members, to prevent or relieve pain and suffering and to enhance the patient’s quality of life, including hospice care under article 40 (Hospice)article forty of this chapter.13.
“Patient” means a resident of New York state who is eighteen years of age or older under the care of a physician.14.
“Physician” means an individual licensed to practice medicine in New York state.15.
“Qualified individual” means a patient with a terminal illness or condition, who has decision-making capacity, has made an informed decision, and has satisfied the requirements of this article in order to obtain a prescription for medication.16.
“Self-administer” means a qualified individual’s affirmative, conscious, and voluntary act to ingest medication under this article. Self-administration does not include lethal injection or lethal infusion.17.
“Terminal illness or condition” means an incurable and irreversible illness or condition that has been medically confirmed and will, within reasonable medical judgment, produce death within six months whether or not treatment is provided.18.
“Third-party health care payer” has its ordinary meaning and includes, but is not limited to, an insurer, organization or corporation licensed or certified under article thirty-two, forty-three or forty-seven of the insurance law, or article forty-four of the public health law; or an entity such as a pharmacy benefits manager or third-party administrator. * NB Effective August 5, 2026
Source:
Section 2899-D — Definitions, https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PBH/2899-D (updated Feb. 13, 2026; accessed Feb. 14, 2026).
