Arkansas 2025 Regular Session

Arkansas Senate Bill SB444 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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1	1	Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
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3	3	State of Arkansas 1
4	4	95th General Assembly A Bill 2
5	5	Regular Session, 2025 SENATE BILL 444 3
6	6	4
7	7	By: Senator K. Hammer 5
8	8	By: Representative L. Johnson 6
9	9	7
10	10	For An Act To Be Entitled 8
11	11	AN ACT TO AMEND THE MEDICAL ETHICS AND DIVERSITY ACT; 9
12	12	AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. 10
13	13	11
14	14	12
15	15	Subtitle 13
16	16	TO AMEND THE MEDICAL ETHICS AND 14
17	17	DIVERSITY ACT. 15
18	18	16
19	19	BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 17
20	20	18
21	21	SECTION 1. Arkansas Code § 17 -80-503(5), concerning the definition of 19
22	22	healthcare service within the Medical Ethics and Diversity Act, is amended to 20
23	23	read as follows: 21
24	24	(5) “Healthcare service” means medical research or medical care 22
25	25	provided to a patient at any time over the entire course of treatment, 23
26	26	including without limitation: 24
27	27	(A) Initial examination; 25
28	28	(B) Patient referral; 26
29	29	(C) Counseling or psychological therapy; 27
30	30	(D) Therapy; 28
31	31	(E) Testing; 29
32	32	(F) Research; 30
33	33	(G) Diagnosis or prognosis; 31
34	34	(H) Instruction; 32
35	35	(I) Dispensing or administering, or both, of any drug, 33
36	36	medication, or device; 34
37	37	(J) Set up or performance of a surgery or other procedure; 35
38	38	(K) Recordkeeping and recordmaking procedures and notes 36 SB444
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41	41	related to treatment; and 1
42	42	(L) Other care or services provided by a medical 2
43	43	practitioner or healthcare institution; 3
44	44	4
45	45	SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 17 -80-504 is amended to read as follows: 5
46	46	17-80-504. Right of conscience. 6
47	47	(a) A medical practitioner, healthcare institution, or healthcare 7
48	48	payer: 8
49	49	(1) Has the right not to participate in a healthcare service 9
50	50	that violates his, her, or its conscience; 10
51	51	(2) Is not required to participate in a healthcare service that 11
52	52	violates his, her, or its conscience; 12
53	53	(3) Is not civilly, criminally, or administratively liable for 13
54	54	declining to participate in a healthcare service that violates his, her, or 14
55	55	its conscience; 15
56	56	(4) Is not civilly, criminally, or administratively liable for 16
57	57	the exercise of conscience rights not to participate in a healthcare service 17
58	58	by a medical practitioner employed, contracted, or granted admitting 18
59	59	privileges by a healthcare institution; and 19
60	60	(5) Shall not be discriminated against in any manner based upon 20
61	61	his, her, or its declining to participate in a healthcare service that 21
62	62	violates his, her, or its conscience. 22
63	63	(b) Exercise of the right of conscience is limited to conscience -based 23
64	64	objections to a particular healthcare service. 24
65	65	(c) A worker in the medical field, whether a contractor or employee, 25
66	66	has the right to not facilitate or participate in an abortion, assisted 26
67	67	suicide, or gender transition procedure or service in any manner. 27
68	68	(d) A medical practitioner, healthcare institution, or healthcare 28
69	69	payer that holds himself, herself, or itself out to the public as religious, 29
70	70	states in its governing documents that it has a religious purpose or mission, 30
71	71	and has internal operating policies or procedures that implement its 31
72	72	religious beliefs has the right to make employment, staffing, contracting, 32
73	73	and admitting privilege decisions consistent with his, her, or its religious 33
74	74	beliefs. 34
75	75	(d)(e) The right of conscience described in subsection (a) of this 35
76	76	section does not include the right to deny emergency medical care as required 36 SB444
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79	79	under 42 U.S.C. § 1395dd, as existing on January 1, 2021, or any other 1
80	80	federal law governing emergency medical treatment, as existing on January 1, 2
81	81	2021. 3
82	82	(e)(1)(f)(1) When a medical practitioner declines to participate in a 4
83	83	healthcare service for reasons of conscience, the medical practitioner shall 5
84	84	alert the employing healthcare institution at the earliest reasonable time 6
85	85	and comply with any applicable protocol developed under this section. 7
86	86	(2)(A) A healthcare institution may develop a protocol for 8
87	87	situations in which a medical practitioner declines to participate in a 9
88	88	healthcare service. 10
89	89	(B) The protocol shall provide for prompt patient access 11
90	90	to medical records to facilitate transfer, if needed. 12
91	91	(3) This section does not require a healthcare institution or 13
92	92	medical practitioner to perform a healthcare service, counsel, or refer a 14
93	93	patient regarding a healthcare service that is contrary to the conscience of 15
94	94	the medical practitioner or healthcare institution. 16
95	95	(f)(1)(g)(1) This section does not prohibit an employer or contracting 17
96	96	healthcare institution from disclosing the specific healthcare services that 18
97	97	an applicant would be required to participate in if he or she is hired for 19
98	98	the position or contract. 20
99	99	(2) Upon being informed of the specific healthcare services 21
100	100	required of the position or contract, the applicant shall disclose whether 22
101	101	he, she, or it has a conscience objection to any of those required duties. 23
102	102	(3) However, a medical practitioner or healthcare institution 24
103	103	shall be able to decline to participate in a healthcare service that violates 25
104	104	his, her, or its conscience if the employer or contracting healthcare 26
105	105	institution, after employment, adds healthcare services to a medical 27
106	106	practitioner's or healthcare institution's duties that would require the 28
107	107	medical practitioner or healthcare institution to provide services that 29
108	108	violate his, her, or its conscience. 30
109	109	(g)(1)(h)(1) A healthcare payer shall file its conscience policies 31
110	110	annually with the State Insurance Department by including a comprehensive 32
111	111	list by billing code of any and all products, services, and procedures that 33
112	112	the healthcare payer shall not pay or make payment for reasons of conscience. 34
113	113	(2) The annual filing described in subdivision (g)(1) (h)(1) of 35
114	114	this section shall: 36 SB444
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117	117	(A) Be provided annually to each beneficiary of the 1
118	118	healthcare payer and on the website of the healthcare payer; and 2
119	119	(B) Not be required for any year in which the healthcare 3
120	120	payer will not exercise its conscience rights under this subchapter. 4
121	121	(h)(i) A healthcare payer shall not use a conscience objection to 5
122	122	refuse or reduce payments to a healthcare provider, healthcare institution, 6
123	123	or beneficiary for any product, service, or procedure that is not included in 7
124	124	the annual filing required under subdivision (g)(1) (h)(1) of this section. 8
125	125	(i)(j) A healthcare payer shall not compel by undue influence, fraud, 9
126	126	or duress a healthcare provider, healthcare institution, or beneficiary to 10
127	127	accept a contract or contract amendment that violates the conscience of the 11
128	128	healthcare provider, healthcare institution, or beneficiary. 12
129	129	(j)(k) The department may issue rules and take any other action 13
130	130	necessary or appropriate to enforce subsections (g)-(i) (h)-(j) of this 14
131	131	section. 15
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133	133	SECTION 3. Arkansas Code Title 17, Chapter 80, Subchapter 5, is 17
134	134	amended to add additional sections to read as follows: 18
135	135	17-80-507. Protection from discrimination. 19
136	136	(a) A healthcare provider shall not be discriminated against because 20
137	137	the healthcare provider: 21
138	138	(1) Provided, caused to be provided, or is about to provide or 22
139	139	cause to be provided information relating to any act or omission the 23
140	140	healthcare provider reasonably believes to be a violation of any provision of 24
141	141	this subchapter to: 25
142	142	(A) His or her employer; 26
143	143	(B) The Attorney General; 27
144	144	(C) The Department of Health; 28
145	145	(D) Any state agency charged with protecting healthcare 29
146	146	rights of conscience; 30
147	147	(E) The United States Department of Health and Human 31
148	148	Services; 32
149	149	(F) The United States Office for Civil Rights; or 33
150	150	(G) Any state or federal agency charged with protecting 34
151	151	healthcare rights of conscience; or 35
152	152	(2) Testified, assisted, or participated, or is about to 36 SB444
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155	155	testify, assist, or participate, in a proceeding concerning a violation. 1
156	156	(b) Unless the disclosure is specifically prohibited by law, a 2
157	157	healthcare provider shall not be discriminated against because the healthcare 3
158	158	provider discloses information, including by a formal or informal 4
159	159	communication, transmission, or discussion, that the healthcare provider 5
160	160	reasonably believes evidences: 6
161	161	(1) Any violation of any law; or 7
162	162	(2) Gross mismanagement, a gross waste of funds, an abuse of 8
163	163	authority, a practice or method of treatment that may put patient health at 9
164	164	risk, or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety. 10
165	165	(c) Notwithstanding any other provision in this section, a complaint 11
166	166	by a medical practitioner against another medical practitioner shall be 12
167	167	submitted according to the peer review process mandated by the Health Care 13
168	168	Quality Improvement Act of 1986, 42 U.S.C. § 11101 et seq., as existing on 14
169	169	January 1, 2025. 15
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171	171	17-80-508. First Amendment protections. 17
172	172	(a)(1) A state licensing, certifying, or recognizing board or entity, 18
173	173	or the Department of Health, shall not reprimand, sanction, revoke, or 19
174	174	threaten to revoke a license, certification, or registration of, or otherwise 20
175	175	discriminate against, a medical practitioner for engaging in speech, 21
176	176	expression, or association that is protected from government interference by 22
177	177	the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, unless the board, 23
178	178	entity, or the department, as applicable, demonstrates by clear and 24
179	179	convincing evidence that the medical practitioner’s speech, expression, or 25
180	180	association was the direct cause of physical harm to a person with whom the 26
181	181	medical practitioner had a practitioner -patient relationship within the three 27
182	182	(3) years immediately preceding the incident of physical harm. 28
183	183	(2) The licensing, certifying, or recognizing board or entity, 29
184	184	or the department, as applicable, shall: 30
185	185	(A) Provide a medical practitioner with any complaints it 31
186	186	has received that may result in the revocation of the medical practitioner’s 32
187	187	license, certification, or registration, within twenty -one (21) days after 33
188	188	receipt of the complaint; and 34
189	189	(B) Pay the medical practitioner an administrative penalty 35
190	190	of five hundred dollars ($500) for each day the complaint is not provided to 36 SB444
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193	193	the medical practitioner after the specified twenty -one (21) days. 1
194	194	(b) A political subdivision of this state shall not contract with, 2
195	195	approve, or require an individual to obtain certifications or credentials 3
196	196	issued or approved by a specialty board or other recognizing or certifying 4
197	197	entity that revokes the certification of, or refuses to issue certification 5
198	198	to, an individual because the individual has engaged in speech, expression, 6
199	199	or association that is protected from government interference by the First 7
200	200	Amendment of the United States Constitution if the individual was not 8
201	201	providing medical advice or treatment to a specific patient that resulted in 9
202	202	physical harm to the patient. 10
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