BILL REQ. #: H-4679.2
| State of Washington | 58th Legislature | 2004 Regular Session |
READ FIRST TIME 02/05/04.
AN ACT Relating to immunity from liability for licensed health care providers volunteering at community health care settings; and amending RCW 4.24.300.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1 RCW 4.24.300 and 2003 c 256 s 1 are each amended to read
as follows:
(1) Any person, including but not limited to a volunteer provider
of emergency or medical services, who without compensation or the
expectation of compensation renders emergency care at the scene of an
emergency or who participates in transporting, not for compensation,
therefrom an injured person or persons for emergency medical treatment
shall not be liable for civil damages resulting from any act or
omission in the rendering of such emergency care or in transporting
such persons, other than acts or omissions constituting gross
negligence or willful or wanton misconduct. Any person rendering
emergency care during the course of regular employment and receiving
compensation or expecting to receive compensation for rendering such
care is excluded from the protection of this subsection.
(2) Any ((physician licensed under chapter 18.57 or 18.71 RCW))
licensed health care provider as listed in RCW 18.130.040 in the state
of Washington who, without compensation or the expectation of
compensation, provides health care services at a community ((clinic
that is a public or private tax exempt corporation)) health care
setting is not liable for civil damages resulting from any act or
omission in the rendering of such care, other than acts or omissions
constituting gross negligence or willful or wanton misconduct.
(3) For purposes of subsection (2) of this section, "community
health care setting" means an entity that provides health care services
and:
(a) Is a clinic operated by a public entity or private tax exempt
corporation;
(b) Is a for-profit corporation that maintains and holds itself out
to the public as having established hours on a regular basis for
providing free health care services to members of the public to the
extent that care is provided without compensation or expectation of
compensation during those established hours; or
(c) Is a for-profit corporation that is participating, through a
written agreement, in a community-based program to provide access to
health care services for uninsured persons, to the extent that:
(i) Care is provided without compensation or expectation of
compensation to individuals who have been referred for care through
that community-based program; and
(ii) The health care provider's participation in the community-based program is conditioned upon his or her agreement to provide
health services without expectation of compensation.