Requiring the department of health and mental hygiene to report on the number of cases of communicable disease during a state of emergency.

A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to requiring the department of health and mental hygiene to report on the number of cases of communicable disease during a state of emergency

The proposed legislation would require the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (“DOHMH”) to report information regarding the number of cases of a communicable disease during a local state of emergency or public health emergency related to an outbreak of such communicable disease. Specifically, DOHMH would be required to publish on its website and regularly update: (1) the total number of diagnosed cases of such communicable disease, disaggregated by borough and zip code of residence; and (2) the total number of diagnostic tests performed for such communicable disease, disaggregated by borough and zip code of residence. Such information would not be reported if the DOHMH Commissioner determines that reporting would compromise the privacy of personally identifiable information or interfere with DOHMH’s ability to address the emergency. The DOHMH Commissioner would be required to notify the Mayor and the Speaker of the Council within 24 hours of making such a determination.