Rights and Duties of Health Care Agents – N.Y. Pub. Health Law § 2982

A health care agent is an adult who has been given the authority to make health care decisions on behalf of someone else.  N.Y. Pub. Health Law § 2980-5.  This section of New York’s Public Health Law delineates the rights and duties of health care agents.  The section generally grants an agent the authority to make all health care decisions that the patient could make.  The section states that the agent is required to consult with qualified health care professionals and make health care decisions based upon the patient’s wishes, unless they are not known, in which case s/he must make decisions based upon patient’s best interests.  The section further states that a health care agent’s decisions receive priority over those of others, unless otherwise stated by the health care proxy (the document granting the agent the right to make health care decisions on behalf of the patient).

In a health information context, this section grants the health care agent access to all medical information, medical and clinical records to make informed decisions on behalf of the patient.