SESSION OF 2021
SUPPLEMENTAL NOTE ON HOUSE BILL NO. 2126
As Amended by House Committee on Judiciary

Brief*
HB 2126 would amend the COVID-19 Response and
Reopening for Business Liability Protection Act by replacing
the definition of “adult care facility” with the following definition
of “covered facility”:
● An adult care home, as defined elsewhere in
statute, except that covered facility would include a
center approved by the Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services as a program for all-inclusive
care for the elderly (PACE) that provides services
only to PACE participants;
● A community mental health center and a crisis
intervention center, as defined elsewhere in
statute; and
● A community service provider, a community
developmental disability organization, and an
institution, as defined in the Developmental
Disabilities Reform Act.
The bill would replace an affirmative defense available in
certain circumstances for an adult care facility in a civil action
for damages, administrative fines, or penalties for a COVID-
19 claim with immunity from liability for a covered facility in a
civil action for damages for a COVID-19 claim if such facility
was in substantial compliance with public health directives
applicable to the activity giving rise to the cause of action
when the cause of action accrued.
____________________
*Supplemental notes are prepared by the Legislative Research
Department and do not express legislative intent. The supplemental
note and fiscal note for this bill may be accessed on the Internet at
http://www.kslegislature.org
 For purposes of this immunity provision, “public health
directives” would mean any of the following required by law to
be followed related to COVID-19:
● State statutes or rules and regulations; or
● Federal statutes or regulations from federal
agencies, including the U.S. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention and the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration of the U.S.
Department of Labor.
The bill would state this immunity provision would not
apply to civil liability when it is established that the act,
omission, or decision giving rise to the cause of action
constituted gross negligence or willful, wanton, or reckless
conduct.
The bill would state the amendments replacing the
affirmative defense with an immunity provision would apply
retroactively to any cause of action accruing on or after March
12, 2020, and prior to termination of the state of disaster
emergency related to the COVID-19 public health emergency.
The bill would be in effect upon publication in the
Kansas Register.

Background
The bill was introduced by the House Committee on
Judiciary at the request of LeadingAge Kansas and Kansas
Health Care Association (KHCA). As introduced, the bill would
have provided immunity for an adult care facility in a civil
action for damages, administrative fines, or penalties for any
claim for damages or liability arising out of or relating to acts,
omissions, or decisions related to the COVID-19 public health
emergency.


2- 2126
House Committee on Judiciary
In the House Committee hearing on February 3, 2021,
representatives of the Association of Community Mental
Health Centers of Kansas, Inc., Axiom Healthcare Service,
Bluestem Communities, Kansas Adult Care Executives,
Kansas Hospital Association, KHCA and Kansas Center for
Assisted Living, LeadingAge Kansas, Locust Grove Village,
Progressive Healthcare Alliance, and Starkey, Inc., testified
as proponents of the bill. Representatives of Bethany Village
and InterHab provided written-only proponent testimony.
Representative Coleman, the State Long-Term Care
Ombudsman, and representatives of AARP Kansas, Disability
Rights Center of Kansas, Kansas Advocates for Better Care,
Kansas Bar Association, and Kansas Trial Lawyers
Association testified as opponents of the bill.
On February 24, the House Committee amended the bill
to:
● Include community mental health centers and crisis
intervention centers in a definition of “covered
facility” and apply the immunity to covered facilities
(at the request of the Association of Community
Mental Health Centers of Kansas) ;
● Include community service providers, community
developmental disability organizations, and
institutions, as defined in the Developmental
Disabilities Reform Act, in the definition of “covered
facility” (at the request of InterHab);
● Remove a provision applying the immunity to
administrative fines or penalties; and
● Replace language providing broader immunity with
a requirement that a facility must have been in
substantial compliance with public health directives

3- 2126
 to qualify for immunity and define “public health
directives” for this specific purpose.
Fiscal Information
According to the fiscal note prepared by the Division of
the Budget on the bill, as introduced, the Department for
Aging and Disability Services (KDADS) and the Office of
Judicial Administration indicate enactment of the bill would
not have a fiscal effect. KDADS indicates the immunity
provided by the bill could create savings in litigation costs for
adult care facilities related to COVID-19 claims.
Any fiscal effect associated with enactment of the bill is
not reflected in The FY 2022 Governor’s Budget Report.
COVID-19; civil liability; immunity; adult care; covered facilities


4- 2126


Statutes affected:
As introduced: 60-5502, 60-5506, 60-5508, 48-924
As Amended by House Committee: 60-5502, 60-5506, 60-5508, 48-924
Enrolled: 60-5502, 60-5506, 60-5508, 48-924