In December 2025, New York State enacted Sections 2832 and 2832-a of the Public Health Law (PHL), aimed at preventing violence in general hospitals and nursing homes. The legislative sponsors cited statistics indicating that US healthcare workers suffer thousands of workplace violence-related injuries every year. The sponsors also cited a recent American College of Emergency Physicians survey finding that 55% reported having been physically assaulted, a third of those assaults resulting in injuries, and the great majority of emergency room physicians had reported being seriously threatened by patients, while emergency room nurses reported even higher levels of injury and assault. In Massachusetts, a similar bill is advancing in that state’s legislature that aims to protect healthcare workers from workplace violence.
The effective dates of New York’s new workplace requirements were delayed, presumably to give healthcare facilities time to comply. This article summarizes these new requirements.
Emergency Department security requirements to know
Effective September 18, 2026, PHL §2832-a will require that, in cities and counties in New York State with populations of one million or more, general hospitals must have at least one off-duty law enforcement officer or trained security staff member present in the Emergency Department (ED) at all times, subject to emergent circumstances that may require redeployment. Effectively, this applies to all general hospitals in New York City, Long Island, and Westchester County.
For all other counties, general hospitals, other than critical access hospitals, sole community hospitals, or rural emergency hospitals, must have at least one off-duty law enforcement officer or trained security staff member on premises at all times, in a manner that prioritizes physical presence near, and with direct responsibility for, the ED.
If the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) determines, based on data and metrics, that any critical access hospital, sole community hospital, or rural emergency hospital is experiencing increased rates of violence or abuse of ED personnel, the statute directs NYSDOH to “work with” such hospital to increase its security.
General hospital annual Safety and Security Assessments and adoption of Safety and Security Plan
Under PHL §2832, beginning January 1, 2027, all general hospitals must conduct an annual Safety and Security Assessment that identifies workplace violence threats and hazards. Among other requirements, the Assessment must be based on hospital reports and logs; concerns or complaints raised by employees, patients, visitors, and union representatives where applicable; the hospital’s layout and access points; the visitor management system; the security and communication systems; and more. General hospitals must share certain data elements with the hospital’s security or safety committee, which must ensure that such data informs the ongoing annual Assessments.
Based on the annual Safety and Security Assessment, general hospitals must adopt and implement a workplace violence Safety and Security Plan to reduce any identified risks. Hospitals must thereafter update their Plans as needed and in response to the annual Safety and Security Assessments. Among other requirements, the hospital’s Safety and Security Plan must include personnel training, and security personnel training, in particular, designed to prevent or minimize the threats and hazards identified in the Assessment.
The Safety and Security Assessment and development of the Plan must include “active involvement of employees” and, if applicable, union representatives. General hospitals must also provide employees and, if applicable, union representatives, with a written “detailed summary” of the plan, along with information on how to report incidents of workplace violence.
The statute would benefit from clarification by lawmakers or NYSDOH regarding the committees through which employees may participate in developing the Plan. PHL §2832(3) states that general hospitals may involve employees through “established general hospital safety and security committees,” as well as through existing labor management committees. The statute later repeats this concept using slightly different wording. Given the reference to labor management committees and the statute’s overlap with labor and employment law, the phrase appears to be referring to workplace safety committees that employees may establish under Labor Law §27-d(2). However, hospitals would benefit from official guidance as to whether this interpretation is correct.
General hospital and nursing home Workplace Violence Prevention Programs
Additionally, by September 18, 2027, all general hospitals and nursing homes must establish a Workplace Violence Prevention Program that protects health care workers, patients, facility residents, and visitors and that complies with criteria set forth in the statute.
General hospitals must ensure that their Workplace Violence Prevention Programs are consistent with the CMS conditions for participation (COPs) for (i) caring for patients in a safe setting and (ii) emergency preparedness. Such programs must also be consistent with the workplace violence prevention standards of the hospital’s accrediting organization, provided such standards are comparable to those of The Joint Commission.
Nursing homes may satisfy the requirement to establish a Workplace Violence Prevention Program by demonstrating compliance with federal rules at 42 CFR 483.71(a)(3) and (b)(1), relating to the required general “facility assessment,” as well as 42 CFR 483.73(a)(1), relating to the facility’s required emergency plan, provided that such assessments and plans address workplace violence threats and hazards.