Provides that advanced practice registered nurses have the same immunity from liability as physicians and surgeons.
Summary
H5537 amends Rhode Island’s Mental Health Law to extend the same civil immunity protections currently available to physicians and surgeons to advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) who are licensed or otherwise authorized to practice in the state and who meet the chapter’s requirements. Under the bill, APRNs would not be liable in court for their participation in proceedings under the Mental Health Law except in cases of actual fraud.
The bill also preserves the existing limitation on liability for physicians and surgeons for injuries arising from a patient’s exercise of rights protected by the chapter, including discharge, when those actions conflict with a provider’s written orders, prescription, advice, or involve gross, willful, or wanton negligence. The act takes effect immediately upon passage.
Impact
This bill updates § 40.1-5-41 of the Rhode Island General Laws to explicitly include APRNs in the statute’s immunity provisions, aligning their legal protection with that of physicians and surgeons in mental health proceedings. The practical effect is to reduce potential civil exposure for APRNs participating in involuntary commitment, discharge, or other proceedings under the Mental Health Law, while leaving the fraud and gross-negligence exceptions intact. It affects behavioral health providers, mental health facilities, and patients subject to chapter 40.1-5 proceedings.
Sentiment
The available record suggests broad support for the bill. It passed the House on June 10, 2025 by a unanimous 71-0 vote, and there are no recorded committee transcripts indicating opposition or controversy. The bill’s caption and explanation frame it as a technical parity measure for APRNs rather than a substantive policy change, which is consistent with the unanimous vote.
Contention
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials. The only potentially sensitive issue is the expansion of liability immunity to APRNs, which could raise concerns about accountability in mental health decision-making, but the bill retains the existing fraud and gross-negligence exceptions and there is no evidence of organized opposition in the vote record. The measure appears to have been treated as a professional scope-and-immunity alignment issue rather than a contested reform.