Free insulin, paid prenatal care leave: Here are new laws set to take effect in NY Jan. 1

New York will usher in first-in-the-nation laws in 2025 that erase insulin costs for diabetes patients and ensure that pregnant workers are given paid leave for medical appointments.

As part of the state budget Gov. Kathy Hochul signed in April, health insurers can no longer charge co-payments or deductibles for insulin, lifting a potential cost burden for some 1.8 million New Yorkers diagnosed with diabetes. The state had previously capped out-of-pocket expenses for insulin at $100 a month.

Another policy change enacted through that $237 billion spending plan: starting Jan. 1, all private-sector employers must now grant workers up to 20 hours of paid time each year for prenatal care, enabling them to leave work for physical exams, monitoring and other pregnancy-related purposes. They can also use that paid time to go for fertility treatments.

Both steps broke ground in the U.S.: New York was the first state to require prenatal leave and first to ban insulin cost-sharing by insurers.

Here are several other state policies set to take effect in 2025, including two that have been challenged in court and await final decisions on appeal.

NY minimum wage rises to $16.50 downstate, $15.50 upstate

A 50-cent hike in New York’s minimum wage kicks in on Jan. 1, bringing it to $16.50 in New York City, Long Island and Westchester County and $15.50 in the rest of the state.

That is part of a series of annual increases set by the 2023 budget, to be followed in 2026 by another 50-cent rise and then automatic increases tied to the inflation rate each year after that.

New York is one of 21 states raising their minimum wages, boosting income for a total of 9.2 million workers nationwide, according to the Economic Policy Institute. The new wage floors in neighboring Connecticut and New Jersey are $16.35 and $15.49, respectively. California’s rises to $16.50, on par with New York’s downstate area.

Washington State is hiking its minimum to $16.66, the highest of any state.

Stretch limos in NY are bound by new safety regulations

New York is phasing in regulations on stretch limousines that were included in the 2024 budget and had been sought since a horrific limo crash in Schoharie in 2018 that killed 20 people.

One that took effect in October requires that such vehicles — expanded to hold nine or more people — be equipped with window-breaking tools, fire extinguishers and easily accessible emergency exits. The next steps come in April 2025, including a misdemeanor charge and minimum $5,000 fine for operating a stretch limo that has been suspended for safety defects.

The Schoharie crash occurred after the brakes failed on a limo that had failed safety inspections and wasn’t supposed to be in use. Among those killed were 17 friends and family members who were traveling to a birthday party in Cooperstown, along with the driver and two pedestrians. The operator was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 5-15 years in prison.

$35,000 outside-pay cap for New York state lawmakers

State lawmakers gave themselves 29% raises at the end of 2022, hiking their pay to $142,000. But with those new salaries, the highest of all state legislatures in the U.S., came a new condition: New York’s 63 senators and 150 Assembly members could no longer earn more than $35,000 in private-sector employment while on the state payroll.

The outside-pay cap was due to start in 2025. But Republican lawmakers filed two lawsuits to block it, arguing it violates the state and federal constitutions, and they won their case in state court on Long Island in July. An appeal is pending in the Appellate Division and may ultimately make its way to the Court of Appeals.

Even-year elections for NY county, town offices

New York passed a law in 2023 to require that elections for county executive, county legislator and town board seats be held in even-numbered years, along with state and federal races. The idea was to boost the turnout for local races, which is dismal in odd-numbered years when voter interest is lower.

That transition was set to start in 2025, when terms would be shortened by one year for local offices on the November ballot so the next election could be held in an even year.

But a slew of towns and counties sued to challenge the law and won a case in Onondaga County in October. Opponents argue local races would get drowned out by state and national politics in even years and should remain separate. They called the mandate an infringement on local authority.

Election shift: NY may move local elections to even years. What does that mean for voter turnout?

The fate of the even-year election law now rests with the Court of Appeals, which has been asked to hear all eight lawsuits that were brought around the state.

Chris McKenna covers government and politics for The Journal News and USA Today Network. Reach him at cmckenna@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: NY laws taking effect Jan. 1: free insulin, paid prenatal care leave

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