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Emergency Law Inventory | Full Law Text

Law Number

Va. Code Ann. 8.01-225.01(A)

Summary Title

Liability: Health Care Provider During Disaster

Summary

When an emergency declaration is in effect, a health care provider who responds to the emergency to provide medical care will not be held legally responsible for injury or death of an existing patient that occurs as a result of abandonment. They can be held legally responsible if acting with extreme carelessness or intent to cause harm. This section only applies when the health care provider owes a duty to provide treatment to an individual, but abandons the individual to respond to the emergency.

Full Title

Certain immunity for health care providers during disasters under specific circumstances

Full Text

A. In the absence of gross negligence or willful misconduct, any health care provider who responds to a disaster by delivering health care to persons injured in such disaster shall be immune from civil liability for any injury or wrongful death arising from abandonment by such health care provider of any person to whom such health care provider owes a duty to provide health care when (i) a state or local emergency has been or is subsequently declared; and (ii) the provider was unable to provide the requisite health care to the person to whom he owed such duty of care as a result of the provider's voluntary or mandatory response to the relevant disaster.

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