Richard N. Gottfried facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Richard Gottfried
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| Member of the New York State Assembly | |
| In office January 1, 1971 – December 31, 2022 |
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| Preceded by | Jerome Kretchmer |
| Succeeded by | Tony Simone |
| Constituency | 65th district (1971–1972) 67th district 1973–1982) 64th district (1983–2002) 75th district (2003–2022) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | May 16, 1947 New York City, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Louise Gottfried |
| Education | Cornell University (BA) Columbia University (JD) |
Richard N. Gottfried (born May 16, 1947) is an American lawyer and politician. He was a member of the New York State Assembly, representing parts of Manhattan. Mr. Gottfried served in the Assembly for over 50 years. This made him the longest-serving member of that group. He was also one of the longest-serving state lawmakers in the United States.
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Early Life and Education
Richard Gottfried was born in New York City. He went to Stuyvesant High School. After high school, he studied at Cornell University, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1968. He later earned a law degree from Columbia Law School in 1973.
Political Career
Richard Gottfried was elected to the New York State Assembly in 1970. He was still a student at law school at the time. He represented District 75, which includes areas like Murray Hill and Chelsea. He was a progressive Democrat. Both the Democratic and Working Families parties supported him.
Leadership Roles
During his time in the Assembly, Mr. Gottfried held many important positions. He was the chairman of the Assembly Committee on Health. He also served on the Committees for Higher Education and Rules. He was part of the Assembly Steering Committee. He also led the group of Assembly members from Manhattan.
Important Laws and Programs
Mr. Gottfried helped create many important laws and programs. These include:
- The Prenatal Care Assistance Program, which helps pregnant people get care.
- Child Health Plus and Family Health Plus programs, which provide health insurance for children and families.
- The Physician Profiling Law, which lets patients find information about their doctors.
- The Family Health Care Decisions Act, which helps decide who makes health care choices for someone who cannot.
- The Health Care Proxy Law, which lets people choose someone to make health care decisions for them if they become unable to.
- The HIV Testing and Confidentiality Law, which protects privacy related to HIV testing.
He also supported the 1998 Hudson River Park Law, which created the park. He helped with the law to make the Jacob Javits Convention Center bigger. He was also involved in the Omnibus Crime Act of 1978 and the 1976 Juvenile Justice Reform Act.
Health and Equality
As the head of the Health Committee, Mr. Gottfried supported reproductive freedom. He worked to keep New York a state where people have choices about their health. He also introduced the first bill for same-sex marriage in the Assembly in 2003. This law was passed in New York State in June 2011.
He also supported other important bills, such as:
- The Gender Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA), which makes it illegal to treat people unfairly based on their gender identity.
Mr. Gottfried was a strong supporter of patient rights. He worked on reforms for managed health care. He also pushed for laws to protect patients and health care providers. He wanted everyone to have access to good, affordable health care. His New York Health Act was a plan for universal, publicly funded health coverage. It was the first of its kind to pass in a state legislature (the NYS Assembly, in 1992).
Retirement
On December 13, 2021, Richard Gottfried announced he would not run for re-election in 2022. He was the longest-serving member of the New York State Assembly. His time in office ended after a record 18,993 days.
