§ 2506. Obstetric and pediatric practitioner incentive demonstration program. 1. There is hereby established in the department the obstetric and pediatric practitioner incentive demonstration program, to provide financial support for obstetric practitioners providing prenatal and obstetric services to medically needy women and to pediatric practitioners serving children up to one year of age, to assist them in paying for professional liability insurance coverage related to those services, within amounts appropriated for that purpose.

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2. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

(a) "Obstetric practitioner". A physician who is board certified or an active candidate for board certification in obstetrics, a physician who is board certified, or eligible for board certification, in family practice and provides obstetric services, a certified nurse midwife, or an obstetric nurse practitioner.

(b) "Pediatric practitioner". A physician who is board certified, or eligible for board certification, in pediatrics or a pediatric nurse practitioner.

(c) "Prenatal and obstetric services to medically needy women" and "pediatric services for children up to one year of age". Prenatal and obstetric services provided by an obstetric practitioner, and pediatric services for children up to one year of age, in private individual or group practice, or comprehensive diagnostic and treatment centers pursuant to article twenty-eight of this chapter, to women and children (i) through the prenatal care assistance program, or the medical assistance program under the social services law; or (ii) through a program approved by the commissioner under this section, under which the services are provided without remuneration to the practitioner for his or her services; or (iii) who are not covered for these services by subparagraph (i) of this paragraph or by private health insurance.

3. The commissioner is authorized to contract with obstetric and pediatric practitioners to provide financial support for the costs they bear for their professional liability insurance coverage, to the extent that the cost is reasonably related or proportional to the amount of prenatal and obstetric and pediatric services to medically needy women and children up to one year of age the practitioner provides in proportion to the total amount of prenatal, obstetric and pediatric services the practitioner provides.

4. Prenatal and obstetric services and pediatric services for children up to one year of age provided without remuneration to the obstetrical or pediatric practitioner, for the purposes of this section, shall be provided as part of a program administered by a general hospital (as defined in article twenty-eight of this chapter) or a city or county health department, approved by the commissioner.

5. The commissioner shall establish regulations, standards and procedures for the obstetric and pediatric practitioner incentive demonstration program, including but not limited to quality assurance, the services to be provided, and the provision or records and information by obstetric and pediatric practitioners applying for or receiving support under this section.

6. In making contracts under this section, the commissioner shall consider the extent to which the support will increase, maintain and improve the accessibility and quality of prenatal and obstetric services to medically needy women and pediatric services to children up to one year of age, and shall assure that support is reasonably distributed geographically throughout urban and rural areas of the state.

7. On or before February first, nineteen hundred ninety-two, the commissioner shall submit to the governor and the chairs of the assembly and senate committees on health a report on the operation and effectiveness of the obstetric and pediatric practitioner incentive demonstration program, including any recommendations the commissioner deems appropriate.