Two bills that would provide liability protections for businesses, churches, schools, manufacturers and health care entities during the COVID-19 pandemic were debated by the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday.
Sen. Bill White, R-Joplin is a sponsor of one of those bills, Senate Bill 42. He said the state should encourage individuals to "step up" to meet the unique needs that arise in times of crises. With the threat of liability suits, individuals and businesses might shy away from providing much-needed services in times of uncertainty.
“You know, you cannot wait during a pandemic to have a full-blown study of thousands of people over months of time to see if the medicine is going to help,” said White. “You're having to use the best judgment on the best evidence you have. This protects health care entities doing that.”
White’s bill goes far beyond protecting health care entities. It also provides protection for places of worship, schools and businesses along the supply chain for COVID-related products.
Lawmakers first considered such lawsuit protections during a special session in November, but adjourned without taking action.
Ken Barnes, president-elect of the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys, spoke in opposition to the bill. Barnes said that there are currently about 100 lawsuits filed in the state of Missouri that reference COVID-19, but none would qualify for protections outlined by White’s bill.
“We don't believe that in times of crisis, we throw the constitution out the window, which is in effect what we'd be doing by providing immunity across the board for these things that are outlined in the bill,” said Barnes.
White noted that the bill would not provide blanket immunity to all actors in the COVID-19 pandemic. Entities can still be sued for intentional or flagrant disregard.
Dana Frese, testifying on behalf of the Missouri Hospital Association, spoke in support of the bill, which would prevent patients from suing hospitals and health care workers for liability related to COVID-19.
“Our Missouri health care providers must remain focused on providing health care to our citizens during this pandemic and not be subjected to litigation over COVID exposure,” said Freeze.
Another proponent of the bill Nikki Strong, with the Missouri Health Care Association, noted in her testimony is that hospitals across the state are losing liability insurance coverage for COVID-19 and other viral infections.
“You won’t have nursing homes in the state of Missouri if we don’t get some protection,” said Strong. Another bill that would provide liability protections related to COVID-19 was also introduced by Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer, R-Parkville.
The committee did not take action on either bill Tuesday.