61 A.D.2d 835 | N.Y. App. Div. | 1978
In an action, inter alia, to declare that the provisions of article 8-AA of the Education Law do not apply to plaintiffs’ practice of medicine, defendants appeal from so much of a judgment of the Supreme Court, Kings County, entered February 9, 1977, as granted the plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment to the extent of declaring that article 8-AA does not apply to services rendered to patients by teaching professionals in their private practices. Judgment reversed insofar as appealed from, on the law, without costs or disbursements, and motion for summary judgment denied. From July 14, 1972 to May 31, 1973 salary negotiations were held between the executive branch of the State of New York and the representatives of the medical and dental faculty of the State University of New York (SUNY). On the latter date a final agreement was reached, subject to ratification by the medical and dental faculty. The agreement was executed upon such ratification on January 3, 1974. The agreement provides that the "State shall prepare, secure introduction and recommend passage by the Legislature of appropriate legislation to authorize a nonprofit corporation in each medical or dental school at SUNY Health Sciences Centers or Medical Centers relating to clinical practice which results in a fee for professional services.” The "Plan for Management of Clinical Practice”, which was appended to the agreement, states that "Clinical practice shall mean the act of providing all forms of medical and health care including patient consultations, and the act of performing clinical investigation involving patients, for which acts a fee for professional service is customarily charged.” It defines clinical practice income as "the income resulting from fees for professional services which services are rendered in connection with clinical practice.” The plan provides that the income so received by the nonprofit corporation, after deduction of stated items, is to be paid to the teaching professional who had engendered such income "up to an amount not to exceed 75% of 'actual’ salary” paid by SUNY. These provisions replaced a 1959 resolution of SUNY’s Board of Trustees which had limited the private medical practice income of teaching professionals to 50% of their State salaries. Apparently, there had been no particular policing of the 1959 resolution, and it did not provide for disposition of private fee income in excess of the stated ceiling. Article 8-AA of the Education Law (§§ 385-a to 385-i) was enacted in 1973 (L 1973, ch 382, § 8), apparently in implementation of this agreement, and in accordance with the State’s promise to "prepare, secure introduction and recommend passage by the Legislature of appropriate legislation”. Section 385-b defines clinical practice and clinical practice income in accordance with the agreement. Thus, clinical practice income is stated to be "all income resulting from fees charged for professional services rendered in connection with clinical practice” (with stated exceptions) and clinical practice is stated to be "the act of providing any form of medical and health care * * * for which acts a fee for professional services is customarily charged.” However, plaintiffs seek a declaration that article 8-AA of the Education Law is not applicable to fees earned by teaching professionals in their private practices. They point to section 385-a of the Education Law, entitled "Statement of legislative intent”, which provides: "It is the sense of the legislature that the current