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HOUSE BILL No. 2521
AN A CT concerning the Kansas tort claims act; expanding the act to include child
placement agencies that contract with the secretary for children and families between
July 1, 2026, and July 1, 2029; amending K.S.A. 75-6102 and repealing the existing
section.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
Section 1. K.S.A. 75-6102 is hereby amended to read as follows:
75-6102. As used in K.S.A. 75-6101 through 75-6118, and amendments
thereto, unless the context clearly requires otherwise:
(a) "State" means the state of Kansas and any department or
branch of state government, or any agency, authority, institution or
other instrumentality thereof.
(b) "Municipality" means any county, township, city, school
district or other political or taxing subdivision of the state, or any
agency, authority, institution or other instrumentality thereof.
(c) "Governmental entity" means:
(1) State or municipality; or
(2) between July 1, 2026, and July 1, 2029, a child placement
agency as defined in K.S.A. 65-503, and amendments thereto, if such
agency had an active contract with the secretary for children and
families at the time that the act or omission giving rise to the claim
occurred.
(d) (1) "Employee" means: (A) Any officer, employee, servant or
member of a board, commission, committee, division, department,
branch or council of a governmental entity, including elected or
appointed officials and persons acting on behalf or in service of a
governmental entity in any official capacity, whether with or without
compensation and a charitable healthcare provider;
(B) any steward or racing judge appointed pursuant to K.S.A. 74-
8818, and amendments thereto, regardless of whether the services of
such steward or racing judge are rendered pursuant to contract as an
independent contractor;
(C) employees an employee of the United States marshals service
engaged in the transportation of inmates on behalf of the secretary of
corrections;
(D) a person who is an employee of a nonprofit independent
contractor, other than a municipality, under contract to provide
educational or vocational training to inmates in the custody of the
secretary of corrections and who is engaged in providing such service
in an institution under the control of the secretary of corrections
provided that such employee does not otherwise have coverage for such
acts and omissions within the scope of their employment through a
liability insurance contract of such independent contractor;
(E) a person who is an employee or volunteer of a nonprofit
program, other than a municipality, who has contracted with the
commissioner of juvenile justice secretary of corrections or with
another nonprofit program that has contracted with the secretary of
corrections to provide a juvenile justice program for juvenile offenders
in a judicial district provided that such employee or volunteer does not
otherwise have coverage for such acts and omissions within the scope
of their employment or volunteer activities through a liability insurance
contract of such nonprofit program;
(F) a person who contracts with the Kansas guardianship program
to provide services as a court-appointed guardian or conservator;
(G) an employee of an indigent healthcare clinic;
(H) former employees for acts and omissions within the scope of
their employment during their former employment with the
governmental entity;
(I) any member of a regional medical emergency response team,
created under the provisions of K.S.A. 48-928, and amendments
thereto, in connection with authorized training or upon activation for an
emergency response;
(J) any member of a regional search and rescue team or regional
hazardous materials response team contracting with the state fire
marshal pursuant to K.S.A. 31-133, and amendments thereto, or K.S.A.
HOUSE BILL No. 2521—page 2
75-1518, and amendments thereto, in connection with authorized
training or upon activation for an emergency response; and
(K) medical students enrolled at the university of Kansas medical
center who are in clinical training, on or after July 1, 2008, at the
university of Kansas medical center or at another healthcare institution.
(2) "Employee" does not include: (A) An individual or entity for
actions within the scope of K.S.A. 60-3614, and amendments thereto;
or
(B) any independent contractor under contract with a
governmental entity except those contractors specifically listed in
subsection (d)(1).
(e) "Charitable healthcare provider" means a person licensed by
the state board of healing arts as an exempt licensee or a federally
active licensee, a person issued a limited permit by the state board of
healing arts, a physician assistant licensed by the state board of healing
arts, a mental health practitioner licensed by the behavioral sciences
regulatory board, an ultrasound technologist currently registered in any
area of sonography credentialed through the American registry of
radiology technologists, the American registry for diagnostic medical
sonography or cardiovascular credentialing international and working
under the supervision of a person licensed to practice medicine and
surgery, or a healthcare provider as the term "healthcare provider" is
defined under in K.S.A. 65-4921, and amendments thereto, who has
entered into an agreement with:
(1) The secretary of health and environment under K.S.A. 75-
6120, and amendments thereto, who, pursuant to such agreement,
gratuitously renders professional services to a person who has provided
information that would reasonably lead the healthcare provider to make
the good faith assumption that such person meets the definition of
medically indigent person as defined by this section or to a person
receiving medical assistance from the programs operated by the
department of health and environment, and who is considered an
employee of the state of Kansas under K.S.A. 75-6120, and
amendments thereto;
(2) the secretary of health and environment and who, pursuant to
such agreement, gratuitously renders professional services in
conducting children's immunization programs administered by the
secretary;
(3) a local health department or indigent healthcare clinic that
renders professional services to medically indigent persons or persons
receiving medical assistance from the programs operated by the
department of health and environment gratuitously or for a fee paid by
the local health department or indigent healthcare clinic to such
provider and who is considered an employee of the state of Kansas
under K.S.A. 75-6120, and amendments thereto. Professional services
rendered by a provider under this paragraph shall be considered
gratuitous notwithstanding fees based on income eligibility guidelines
charged by a local health department or indigent healthcare clinic and
notwithstanding any fee paid by the local health department or indigent
healthcare clinic to a provider in accordance with this paragraph; or
(4) the secretary of health and environment to provide dentistry
services defined by K.S.A. 65-1422 et seq., and amendments thereto, or
dental hygienist services defined by K.S.A. 65-1456, and amendments
thereto, that are targeted, but are not limited to, medically indigent
persons, and are provided on a gratuitous basis:
(A) At a location sponsored by a not-for-profit organization that is
not the dentist or dental hygienist office location;
(B) at the office location of a dentist or dental hygienist provided
the care be delivered as part of a program organized by a not-for-profit
organization and approved by the secretary of health and environment;
or
(C) as part of a charitable program organized by the dentist that
has been approved by the secretary of health and environment upon a
showing that the dentist seeks to treat medically indigent patients on a
HOUSE BILL No. 2521—page 3
gratuitous basis, except that such dentistry services and dental hygienist
services shall not include "oral and maxillofacial surgery" as defined by
K.A.R. 71-2-2, or use sedation or general anesthesia that result in "deep
sedation" or "general anesthesia" as defined by K.A.R. 71-5-7.
(f) "Medically indigent person" means a person who lacks
resources to pay for medically necessary healthcare services and who
meets the eligibility criteria for qualification as a medically indigent
person established by the secretary of health and environment under
K.S.A. 75-6120, and amendments thereto.
(g) "Indigent healthcare clinic" means an outpatient medical care
clinic operated on a not-for-profit basis that has a contractual
agreement in effect with the secretary of health and environment to
provide healthcare services to medically indigent persons.
(h) "Local health department" means the same as defined in
K.S.A. 65-241, and amendments thereto.
(i) "Fire control, fire rescue or emergency medical services
equipment" means any vehicle, firefighting tool, protective clothing,
breathing apparatus and any other supplies, tools or equipment used in
firefighting or , fire rescue or in the provision of emergency medical
services.
(j) "Community mental health center" means the same as defined
in K.S.A. 39-2002, and amendments thereto.
(k) The amendments made to this section by this act shall only
apply to a cause of action accruing on or after July 1, 2026.
Sec. 2. K.S.A. 75-6102 is hereby repealed.
HOUSE BILL No. 2521—page 4
Sec. 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
publication in the statute book.
I hereby certify that the above BILL originated in the
HOUSE, and was adopted by that body
HOUSE adopted
Conference Committee Report
Speaker of the House.
Chief Clerk of the House.
Passed the SENATE
as amended
SENATE adopted
Conference Committee Report
President of the Senate.
Secretary of the Senate.
APPROVED
Governor.