Florida Senate - 2019                                     SB 256
       
       
        
       By Senator Baxley
       
       
       
       
       
       12-00534-19                                            2019256__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to child protection teams; amending s.
    3         768.28, F.S.; revising the definition of the term
    4         “officer, employee, or agent,” as it applies to
    5         immunity from personal liability in certain actions,
    6         to include any member of a child protection team
    7         established by the Department of Health in certain
    8         circumstances; providing an effective date.
    9          
   10  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   11  
   12         Section 1. Paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (9) of
   13  section 768.28, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   14         768.28 Waiver of sovereign immunity in tort actions;
   15  recovery limits; limitation on attorney fees; statute of
   16  limitations; exclusions; indemnification; risk management
   17  programs.—
   18         (9)(a) An No officer, employee, or agent of the state or of
   19  any of its subdivisions may not shall be held personally liable
   20  in tort or named as a party defendant in any action for any
   21  injury or damage suffered as a result of any act, event, or
   22  omission of action in the scope of her or his employment or
   23  function, unless such officer, employee, or agent acted in bad
   24  faith or with malicious purpose or in a manner exhibiting wanton
   25  and willful disregard of human rights, safety, or property.
   26  However, such officer, employee, or agent shall be considered an
   27  adverse witness in a tort action for any injury or damage
   28  suffered as a result of any act, event, or omission of action in
   29  the scope of her or his employment or function. The exclusive
   30  remedy for injury or damage suffered as a result of an act,
   31  event, or omission of an officer, employee, or agent of the
   32  state or any of its subdivisions or constitutional officers is
   33  shall be by action against the governmental entity, or the head
   34  of such entity in her or his official capacity, or the
   35  constitutional officer of which the officer, employee, or agent
   36  is an employee, unless such act or omission was committed in bad
   37  faith or with malicious purpose or in a manner exhibiting wanton
   38  and willful disregard of human rights, safety, or property. The
   39  state or its subdivisions are shall not be liable in tort for
   40  the acts or omissions of an officer, employee, or agent
   41  committed while acting outside the course and scope of her or
   42  his employment or committed in bad faith or with malicious
   43  purpose or in a manner exhibiting wanton and willful disregard
   44  of human rights, safety, or property.
   45         (b) As used in this subsection, the term:
   46         1. “Employee” includes any volunteer firefighter.
   47         2. “Officer, employee, or agent” includes, but is not
   48  limited to, any health care provider when providing services
   49  pursuant to s. 766.1115; any nonprofit independent college or
   50  university located and chartered in this state which owns or
   51  operates an accredited medical school, and its employees or
   52  agents, when providing patient services pursuant to paragraph
   53  (10)(f); and any public defender or her or his employee or
   54  agent, including, among others, an assistant public defender or
   55  and an investigator; and any member of a child protection team,
   56  as defined in s. 39.01, when carrying out her or his duties as a
   57  team member.
   58         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.