Nebraska AED Law

L.B. 498 - Effective March 30, 1999

LEGISLATIVE BILL 498
Approved by the Governor March 30, 1999
Introduced by Wickersham, 49; Jensen, 20

AN ACT relating to public health and welfare; to amend section 71-5178,
Revised Statutes Supplement, 1998; to provide for the use of
automated external defibrillators; to define terms; to provide for
immunity from liability; to provide for rules and regulations; to
repeal the original section; and to declare an emergency.
Be it enacted by the people of the State of Nebraska,
Section 1. (1) For purposes of this section:
(a) Automated external defibrillator means a device that:
(i) Is capable of recognizing the presence or absence of ventricular
fibrillation or rapid ventricular tachycardia and is capable of determining,
without intervention of an operator, whether defibrillation should be
performed; and
(ii) Automatically charges and requests delivery of an electrical
impulse to an individual's heart when it has identified a condition for which
defibrillation should be performed;
(b) Health care facility means an institution subject to licensing
under sections 71-2017 to 71-2029; and
(c) Health care professional means any person who is licensed,
certified, or registered by the Department of Health and Human Services
Regulation and Licensure and who is authorized within his or her scope of
practice to use an automated external defibrillator.
(2) No person other than a health care professional shall use an
automated external defibrillator for emergency care or treatment unless:
(a) The user of the defibrillator has received appropriate training
in the use of the defibrillator as established by the Department of Health and
Human Services Regulation and Licensure; and
(b) The defibrillator is maintained and tested according to the
manufacturer's guidelines.
(3) Except for the action or omission of a health care professional
acting in such capacity or in a health care facility, no person who delivers
emergency care or treatment using an automated external defibrillator as
prescribed in subsection (2) of this section shall be liable in any civil
action to respond in damages as a result of his or her acts of commission or
omission arising out of and in the course of rendering such care or treatment
in good faith. Nothing in this subsection shall be deemed to (a) grant
immunity for any willful, wanton, or grossly negligent acts of commission or
omission or (b) limit the immunity provisions for certain health care
professionals as provided in section 71-5194.
Sec. 2. Section 71-5178, Revised Statutes Supplement, 1998, is
amended to read:
71-5178. The department, with the approval of the board, shall
adopt and promulgate rules and regulations necessary to:
(1) Implement the Emergency Medical Services Act;
(2) Create the following certification classifications of
out-of-hospital emergency care providers: (a) First responder; (b) emergency
medical technician; (c) emergency medical technician-intermediate; and (d)
emergency medical technician-paramedic. The rules and regulations creating
the classifications shall include the practices and procedures authorized for
each classification, training and testing requirements, recertification
requirements, and other criteria and qualifications for each classification
determined to be necessary for protection of public health and safety;
(3) Provide for curricula which will allow out-of-hospital emergency
care providers and users of automated external defibrillators as defined in
section 1 of this act to be trained for the delivery of practices and
procedures in units of limited subject matter which will encourage continued
development of abilities and use of such abilities through additional
authorized practices and procedures;
(4) Establish procedures and requirements for applications for
examination, certification, or recertification in any of the certification
classifications created pursuant to the Emergency Medical Services Act;
(5) Provide for the licensure of basic life support services and
advanced life support services. The rules and regulations providing for
licensure shall include standards and requirements for: Vehicles, equipment,
maintenance, sanitation, inspections, personnel, training, medical direction,
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records maintenance, practices and procedures to be provided by employees or
members of each classification of service, and other criteria for licensure
established by the department with the approval of the board;
(6) Authorize emergency medical services to provide differing
practices and procedures depending upon the qualifications of out-of-hospital
emergency care providers available at the time of service delivery. No
emergency medical service shall be licensed to provide practices or procedures
without the use of personnel certified to provide the practices or procedures;
(7) Authorize out-of-hospital emergency care providers to perform
any practice or procedure which they are authorized to perform with an
emergency medical service other than the service with which they are
affiliated when requested by the other service and when the patient for whom
they are to render services is in danger of loss of life;
(8) Provide for the approval, inspection, review, and termination of
approval of training agencies and establish minimum standards for services
provided by training agencies. All training for certification shall be
provided through an approved or accredited training agency;
(9) Provide for the minimum qualifications of a physician medical
director in addition to the licensure required by subdivision (10) of section
71-5175;
(10) Provide for the use of physician medical directors, qualified
physician surrogates, model protocols, standing orders, operating procedures,
and guidelines which may be necessary or appropriate to carry out the purposes
of the act. The model protocols, standing orders, operating procedures, and
guidelines may be modified by the physician medical director for use by any
out-of-hospital emergency care provider or emergency medical service before or
after adoption;
(11) Establish criteria for approval of organizations issuing
cardiopulmonary resuscitation certification which shall include criteria for
instructors, establishment of certification periods and minimum curricula, and
other aspects of training and certification; and
(12) Establish recertification and renewal requirements for
out-of-hospital emergency care providers and emergency medical services and
provide for compliance with recertification requirements by one of the
following methods: (a) Continuing education; (b) achieving a
department-prescribed level of performance on a written and practical skills
test; or (c) verification by a physician medical director or qualified
physician surrogate that the applicant is qualified for recertification. The
recertification requirements for out-of-hospital emergency care providers
shall allow recertification at the same or any lower level of certification
for which the out-of-hospital emergency care provider is determined to be
qualified. All certificates and licenses issued under the act shall expire at
midnight on December 31 the third year after issuance; and
(13) Establish criteria for deployment and use of automated external
defibrillators as necessary for the protection of the public health and
safety.
Sec. 3. Original section 71-5178, Revised Statutes Supplement,
1998, is repealed.
Sec. 4. Since an emergency exists, this act takes effect when
passed and approved according to law.
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