Status of Legal Liability of U.S. Healthcare Providers for Care Provided During COVID-19 Pandemic

Legal Liability of Healthcare Providers for Care Provided During COVID-19 Pandemic

...

In an effort to encourage specialists to assist in direct care for patients hospitalized with COVID-19, Sen. Bob Sasse, R-Neb., just introduced a bill that would grant broad legal immunity for those health care providers who provide testing or treatment outside of their specialties to patients with COVID-19 for the duration of the national health emergency. Specifically, the legislation would protect health care providers from federal, state and local civil liability if they are: (1) using or modifying a medical device for an  unapproved use or indication; (2) practicing without a license or outside of an area of specialty if instructed to do so by an individual with such a license or within such an area of specialty; or (3) conducting the testing of, or the provision of treatment to, a patient outside of the premises of standard health care facilities. Other regulators at both the state and federal levels are also likely to take steps to address liability concerns to help insure that available health care providers, regardless of specialty, are encouraged to step forward to assist in caring for COVID-19 patients. This is an area we will continue to monitor closely.

...