(1)  For purposes of this section:

Terms Used In Utah Code 78B-3-424

  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • Health care: means any act or treatment performed or furnished, or which should have been performed or furnished, by any health care provider for, to, or on behalf of a patient during the patient's medical care, treatment, or confinement. See Utah Code 78B-3-403
  • Health care facility: means general acute hospitals, specialty hospitals, home health agencies, hospices, nursing care facilities, assisted living facilities, birthing centers, ambulatory surgical facilities, small health care facilities, health care facilities owned or operated by health maintenance organizations, and end stage renal disease facilities. See Utah Code 78B-3-403
  • Health care provider: includes any person, partnership, association, corporation, or other facility or institution who causes to be rendered or who renders health care or professional services as a hospital, health care facility, physician, physician assistant, registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, nurse-midwife, licensed direct-entry midwife, dentist, dental hygienist, optometrist, clinical laboratory technologist, pharmacist, physical therapist, physical therapist assistant, podiatric physician, psychologist, chiropractic physician, naturopathic physician, osteopathic physician, osteopathic physician and surgeon, audiologist, speech-language pathologist, clinical social worker, certified social worker, social service worker, marriage and family counselor, practitioner of obstetrics, licensed athletic trainer, or others rendering similar care and services relating to or arising out of the health needs of persons or groups of persons and officers, employees, or agents of any of the above acting in the course and scope of their employment. See Utah Code 78B-3-403
  • Indemnification: In general, a collateral contract or assurance under which one person agrees to secure another person against either anticipated financial losses or potential adverse legal consequences. Source: FDIC
  • Person: means :Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
(a)  “Agent” means a person who is an “employee,” “worker,” or “operative,” as defined in Section 34A-2-104, of a health care provider.

(b)  “Ostensible agent” means a person:

(i)  who is not an agent of the health care provider; and

(ii)  who the plaintiff reasonably believes is an agent of the health care provider because the health care provider intentionally, or as a result of a lack of ordinary care, caused the plaintiff to believe that the person was an agent of the health care provider.

(2)  A health care provider named as a defendant in a medical malpractice action is not liable for the acts or omissions of an ostensible agent if:

(a)  the ostensible agent has privileges with the health care provider, but is not an agent of the health care provider;

(b)  the health care provider has, by policy or practice, ensured that a person providing professional services has insurance of a type and amount required, if any is required, by the rules or regulations as established in:

(i)  medical staff by-laws for a health care facility; or

(ii)  other health care facility contracts, indemnification agreements, rules or regulations;

(c)  the insurance required in Subsection (2)(b) is in effect at the time of the alleged act or omission of the ostensible agent; and

(d)  there is a claim of agency or ostensible agency in a plaintiff’s notice of intent to commence an action, the health care provider, within 60 days of the service of the notice of intent to commence an action, lists each person identified by the plaintiff who the provider claims is not an agent or ostensible agent of the provider.

(3)  This section applies to a cause of action that arises on or after July 1, 2010.

Enacted by Chapter 97, 2010 General Session

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