HB0760 creates a framework for the prescription, storage, and emergency use of bronchodilator rescue inhalers, such as albuterol, for both certain non-school entities and public schools. In the non-school setting, a healthcare practitioner may prescribe an inhaler in the name of an “authorized entity” that may have allergens present and could face asthma or respiratory emergencies, including child care agencies, residential child care facilities, restaurants, recreation camps, youth sports leagues, theme parks, resorts, and sports arenas. The bill allows a pharmacist to dispense the inhaler under a standing protocol and requires the entity to designate an employee to keep it in an unlocked, secure location and administer it in an emergency when a physician is not immediately available.
For schools, the bill encourages each LEA and public charter school to maintain bronchodilator rescue inhalers in at least two locations, such as the office, nurse’s office, or athletic office, and permits school nurses or other trained personnel to use them under a standing protocol. It also directs the State Board of Education, in consultation with the Department of Health, to adopt rules and clinical protocols for administration. The bill includes liability protections for designated employees, schools, LEAs, healthcare practitioners, and pharmacists, limiting civil liability for ordinary negligence and generally shielding them unless there is intentional disregard for safety.
The bill amends Tennessee Code Annotated Titles 49, 53, 63, and 68, but its core changes are in Title 63 for authorized entities and Title 49 for schools. It establishes new definitions for asthma, bronchodilator rescue inhaler, healthcare practitioner, standing protocol, and authorized entity, and authorizes the Board of Pharmacy to promulgate implementing rules. The act takes effect immediately for rulemaking purposes and for all other purposes on July 1, 2026.
The overall sentiment around the bill appears strongly supportive and noncontroversial. It advanced through multiple committees and floor votes unanimously, with no recorded nays at any stage, suggesting broad bipartisan agreement on improving emergency access to asthma medication in schools and public venues. The bill was ultimately passed and approved by the governor.
There is little visible contention in the available record, but the main policy choices are the scope of entities covered, the decision to make school inhaler placement encouraged rather than mandatory, and the liability standards for schools, staff, practitioners, and pharmacists. The bill balances expanded access to emergency respiratory treatment with procedural safeguards, standing protocols, and limited immunity for good-faith administration.
The bill adds new statutory authority allowing healthcare practitioners to prescribe bronchodilator rescue inhalers to authorized entities and allowing pharmacists to dispense them under standing protocols. It also creates a school-based framework encouraging LEAs and public charter schools to stock inhalers in multiple locations and authorizing trained school personnel to administer them in emergencies. The measure amends Tennessee law to add definitions, rulemaking authority for the Board of Pharmacy and State Board of Education, and liability protections for entities and individuals involved in good-faith emergency use.
The bill appears to have enjoyed broad, unanimous support throughout the legislative process. Committee votes and floor votes were all recorded as unanimous or overwhelmingly favorable, with no opposition reflected in the available voting history. The absence of recorded dissent suggests the measure was viewed as a practical public health and school safety bill aimed at improving emergency response to asthma and respiratory distress.
No major opposition is reflected in the available record, and there are no committee transcripts showing debate. The main issues implicit in the bill are operational rather than ideological: whether schools and other entities should merely be encouraged versus required to stock inhalers, how many locations should store them, who should be trained to administer them, and how far liability protections should extend. The bill resolves these concerns by using standing protocols, secure storage requirements, and limited immunity for ordinary negligence while preserving liability for intentional disregard for safety.