Protection for the Registry Operator
Running a statewide registry that stores life-and-death medical instructions carries real legal risk. This statute addresses that risk by providing a liability shield for the qualifying health information exchange organization and its contractors.
Except for acts of gross negligence, wilful misconduct or intentional wrongdoing, the qualifying health information exchange organization and its contractors are not subject to civil liability for any claims or demands arising out of the administration or operation of, or the provision of access to information stored in, the registry established pursuant to this article.
A.R.S. § 36-3296(A)The protection is broad but not absolute. If the organization operates the registry negligently or acts with intentional wrongdoing, the immunity does not apply. This strikes a balance: the organization can build and maintain the system without fear of lawsuits over routine operational issues, but it remains accountable for serious failures.
Good Faith Protection for Healthcare Providers
Providers also receive protection when they rely on directives retrieved from the registry. A provider who makes healthcare decisions based on a directive that appears genuine receives the same criminal and civil immunity available under A.R.S. 36-3205 and 36-3251.
A health care provider who makes good faith health care decisions in reliance on the provisions of an apparently genuine health care directive received from the registry is immune from criminal and civil liability to the same extent and under the same conditions as prescribed in sections 36-3205 and 36-3251.
A.R.S. § 36-3296(B)There is one practical detail worth noting: the requirement that a prehospital medical care directive be on an orange form does not apply when a provider retrieves it through the registry. This makes sense. The orange form requirement exists so paramedics can quickly identify the document in a physical setting. When the directive comes through an electronic registry, the visual cue is unnecessary.
Nothing in this statute requires providers to check the registry before treating a patient. Providers are not penalized for not looking. But when they do check and act in good faith on what they find, the law protects them.
