Good Samaritan Act

The act governs civil liability for people who render emergency assistance or who provide care without compensation, and its central mechanism is a statutory exemption from civil liability for the aid given. That exemption covers ordinary bystanders performing first aid — including cardiopulmonary resuscitation, use of an automated external defibrillator, assistance to a choking victim, or administration of an opioid antagonist — and extends to a broad range of licensed professionals responding to an emergency, among them physicians, nurses, physician assistants, dentists, pharmacists, optometrists, physical therapists, podiatrists, respiratory care practitioners, and veterinarians, as well as to law enforcement officers, firefighters, and emergency medical responders. Parallel protections reach adjacent situations: free medical and dental clinics treating patients at no charge, emergency instructions given over the telephone, disaster relief volunteers, engineers and architects providing professional services after a disaster, and those assisting with building evacuations.

Editorial summary generated from the text of this act. It is not part of the statute — read the sections below for the operative language.