Gov. Hochul vetoes New York Grieving Families Act a second time. What to know

Gov. Kathy Hochul has vetoed the so-called Grieving Families Act that sought to expand New York’s wrongful death law to in part allow for compensating close family members for emotional loss.

The veto keeps in place state law that limits wrongful death legal damages based on wage-earning potential. In killing the bill, Hochul raised concerns that allowing courts to award emotional loss damages would increase insurance and liability costs.

It was the second time the Democratic governor vetoed the Grieving Families Act, which passed the Democrat-controlled Legislature in both 2022 and 2023. State lawmakers this year made some minor changes to the bill in hopes of gaining Hochul’s approval.

In the veto letter, Hochul asserted those changes fell short of addressing her concerns about the bill's potential "unintended consequences" for businesses, consumers and the financial well-being of the state's health care facilities — "most notably" public hospitals that serve disadvantaged communities.

What Grieving Families Act supporters say

State lawmakers slammed Hochul for failing to approve the Grieving Families Act, calling it a long-overdue reform of New York’s wrongful death statutes, which only allow damages for pecuniary loss, meaning based on earnings potential.

That income-based approach most harshly impacts children, seniors, women and people of color, state lawmakers said. The legal bias harms people who often have no income or significantly less income. Put differently, it is unjust to those who have been traditionally undervalued in society, lawmakers said.

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David Scher, president of the state Trial Lawyers Association, asserted Hochul's veto was "denying victims their day in court, making it more advantageous to kill than to injure, and putting corporate profits over patient safety."

"In New York, because of this veto, the value of a life sadly continues to be tied to the size of a person's paycheck," he said in a statement. "With this act, the governor has continued to side with business groups over the interests of those who elected her."

A total of 47 other states allow for compensation for emotional loss in their wrongful death statutes, lawmakers noted.

Why NY hospitals, businesses opposed Grieving Families Act?

Hospitals, doctors, and health providers spent years attempting to pressure Hochul to exclude the health care sector from any changes to wrongful death statutes.

Health trade groups voiced concerns the potential for higher wrongful death payouts would drive up medical malpractice and liability insurance costs, citing the fact New York health providers already pay some of the highest costs nationally for both.

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Business groups and local governments also voiced concerns about rising insurance and wrongful death lawsuit costs. Business owners, local officials and hospital leaders noted any negative economic impact would be heightened by current workforce and economic challenges plaguing New York.

How was this bill different than 2022?

Hochul’s second veto of the Grieving Families Act came despite some changes to the bill that passed last year.For example, the original bill amended the law to allow “surviving close family member” to be eligible to recover expanded damages, but this year’s version narrowed it by listing the type of eligible family members.

But the state Medical Society representing thousands of doctors asserted this year’s version maintained key language regarding new legal damages. Specifically, it allowed for damages for “grief or anguish” that the group asserted would increase medical liability premiums.

What’s next for Grieving Families Act

Hochul’s first veto noted she was pursuing legislation to focus exclusively on increasing wrongful death payouts related to children, but state lawmakers refused.

Her second veto letter alluded to that same proposal, as well as her other unspecified attempts to strike a compromise with lawmakers that would limit the risk of raising insurance and liability costs for consumers and businesses.

She has also noted her reluctance to approve the broader bill stemmed in part from a lack of research into the potential economic impact, suggesting a state study of the issue could progress the legislation.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Hochul vetoes NY's Grieving Families Act a second time. What to know