---
type: "Bill"
title: "Permits doulas to be present in the operating room while a cesarean section is being performed"
description: "Requires maternal healthcare facilities to permit doulas to be present in the operating room while a cesarean section is being performed."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ny"
legislature: "New York Legislature"
session: "2023-2024"
identifier: "S 5991"
citation: "New York S 5991 (2023-2024)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: []
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Roxanne J. Persaud"]
version_count: 2
action_count: 25
vote_count: 5
first_action: "2023-03-24"
last_action: "2024-12-21"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/73eb4571-8f8d-4ab5-9bc5-a74261c229fc"
source_url: "http://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2023/S5991"
source_hash: "f510b26a1ad513b92877b21c0872f4b914d9f645a73b0203b7e82b66252f6383"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ny"]
---

# New York S 5991 (2023-2024) — Permits doulas to be present in the operating room while a cesarean section is being performed

Requires maternal healthcare facilities to permit doulas to be present in the operating room while a cesarean section is being performed.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **S5991** (committee substitute) — [source](http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?sh=printbill&bn=S5991&term=2023&Text=Y)
2. **S5991A** (committee substitute) — [source](http://legislation.nysenate.gov/pdf/bills/2023/S5991A)

## Votes

- Floor Vote - Version: A — **61–0** (pass) · upper
- Assembly Vote — **147–1** (pass) · lower
- Women's Issues Vote - Version: A — **6–0** (pass) · upper
- Women's Issues Vote - Version: A — **7–0** (pass) · upper
- Floor Vote - Version: A — **58–0** (pass) · upper

## Sponsors

- Roxanne J. Persaud — primary (person)
- John Liu — cosponsor (person)
- Joseph P. Addabbo Jr. — cosponsor (person)
- Luis R. Sepúlveda — cosponsor (person)
- Nathalia Fernandez — cosponsor (person)
- Robert Jackson — cosponsor (person)
- Samra Brouk — cosponsor (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2023-03-24** REFERRED TO WOMEN'S ISSUES `referral-committee`
- **2023-05-18** AMEND AND RECOMMIT TO WOMEN'S ISSUES `amendment-passage, referral-committee`
- **2023-05-18** PRINT NUMBER 5991A `amendment-passage`
- **2023-05-23** 1ST REPORT CAL.1261
- **2023-05-24** 2ND REPORT CAL.
- **2023-05-30** ADVANCED TO THIRD READING
- **2023-06-01** PASSED SENATE `passage`
- **2023-06-01** DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY
- **2023-06-01** REFERRED TO HEALTH `referral-committee`
- **2024-01-03** DIED IN ASSEMBLY
- **2024-01-03** RETURNED TO SENATE
- **2024-01-03** REFERRED TO WOMEN'S ISSUES `referral-committee`
- **2024-01-08** 1ST REPORT CAL.100
- **2024-01-09** 2ND REPORT CAL.
- **2024-01-16** ADVANCED TO THIRD READING
- **2024-01-22** PASSED SENATE `passage`
- **2024-01-22** DELIVERED TO ASSEMBLY
- **2024-01-22** REFERRED TO HEALTH `referral-committee`
- **2024-01-23** SUBSTITUTED FOR A7606
- **2024-01-23** ORDERED TO THIRD READING CAL.230
- **2024-01-23** PASSED ASSEMBLY `passage`
- **2024-01-23** RETURNED TO SENATE
- **2024-12-12** DELIVERED TO GOVERNOR `executive-receipt`
- **2024-12-21** SIGNED CHAP.654 `executive-signature`
- **2024-12-21** APPROVAL MEMO.83

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/73eb4571-8f8d-4ab5-9bc5-a74261c229fc`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official New York legislature records).