02/17/2023 03:15 PM House LABOR & COMMERCE

        HB  57-EMERGENCY MED. SVCS: REVIEW ORGANIZATIONS                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
3:38:15 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR SUMNER announced  that the next order of  business would be                                                               
HOUSE BILL NO.  57, "An Act relating to  review organizations and                                                               
permitting an emergency medical  services provider to establish a                                                               
review organization; and relating to patient records."                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
3:38:41 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE WRIGHT,  as prime sponsor,  introduced HB 57.   He                                                               
stated that  emergency medical service (EMS)  providers currently                                                               
are   not  included   in  the   legal   definition  for   privacy                                                               
protections.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
3:40:14 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
ALLAN  RIORDAN-RANDALL,  Staff,  Representative  Stanley  Wright,                                                               
Alaska  State   Legislature,  presented   HB  57  on   behalf  of                                                               
Representative  Wright,  prime sponsor.  He stated  that it would                                                               
modify  sections of  AS 18.23.07.0  to add  EMS personnel  to the                                                               
definitions  for privacy  protections.   It  would reduce  excess                                                               
litigation  against  EMS  personnel  and allow  them  to  perform                                                               
better at their jobs.                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
3:42:04 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
BRIAN WEBB, Emergency Medical Services  Officer, Section of Rural                                                               
and  Community   Health  Systems,  Division  of   Public  Health,                                                               
Department of  Health, described EMS providers  being without the                                                               
same  privacy  protections  as  other  medical  providers  as  an                                                               
"omission."    Legislation  to   protect  this  privacy  for  EMS                                                               
providers has  been enacted in other  states.  He said  that many                                                               
rural communities  have EMS directors  that are volunteers.   The                                                               
lack  of  privacy  protections that  they  would  otherwise  have                                                               
causes some to resign.                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
3:44:43 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  PRAX  asked  whether medical  professionals  have                                                               
professional liability insurance coverage.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
MR.  WEBB  answered  that  medical  professionals  do  have  such                                                               
coverage but added that that coverage  does not carry over when a                                                               
medical professional is acting as a volunteer EMS director.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
3:46:05 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
DR.  MICHAEL LEVY,  EMS Medical  Director, Section  of Rural  and                                                               
Community Health  Systems, Division of Public  Health, Department                                                               
of Health, stated that EMS  is a sub-specialty of board certified                                                               
medicine, demonstrating that  it is its own unique  branch of the                                                               
healthcare system.   He said  that peer review of  best practices                                                               
in medicine is  used to improve the care given  by providers that                                                               
is largely unavailable to EMS  providers because they do not have                                                               
the same privacy protections as other healthcare providers.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
3:48:36 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE   PRAX   asked  whether   professional   liability                                                               
insurance is available to EMS providers.                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
DR. LEVY answered that malpractice  insurance is available to EMS                                                               
personnel.   He added that  the importance  of peer review  is to                                                               
improve  care, but  without  privacy  protections, EMS  personnel                                                               
could face "discovery" for potential civil proceedings.                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
[HB 57 was held over.]