Alaska Good Samaritan Law

The discussion of what to include in a first aid kit prompted me to look at the AK Good Samaritan Law.

Alaska Statutes.

Title 9. Code of Civil Procedure

Chapter 65. Actions, Immunities, Defenses, and Duties

Section 90. Civil Liability For Emergency Aid.

AS 09.65.090. Civil Liability For Emergency Aid.

(a) A person at a hospital or any other location who renders emergency care or emergency counseling to an injured, ill, or emotionally distraught person who reasonably appears to the person rendering the aid to be in immediate need of emergency aid in order to avoid serious harm or death is not liable for civil damages as a result of an act or omission in rendering emergency aid.

(b) A member of an organization that exists for the purpose of providing emergency services is not liable for civil damages for injury to a person that results from an act or omission in providing first aid, search, rescue, or other emergency services to the person, regardless of whether the member is under a preexisting duty to render assistance, if the member provided the service while acting as a volunteer member of the organization; in this subsection, "volunteer" means a person who is paid not more than $10 a day and a total of not more than $500 a year, not including ski lift tickets and reimbursement for expenses actually incurred, for providing emergency services.

(c) The immunity provided under (b) of this section does not apply to civil damages that result from providing or attempting to provide any of the following advanced life support techniques unless the person who provided them was authorized by law to provide them:

(1) manual electric cardiac defibrillation;

(2) administration of antiarrhythmic agents;

(3) intravenous therapy;

(4) intramuscular therapy; or

(5) use of endotracheal intubation devices.

(d) This section does not preclude liability for civil damages as a result of gross negligence or reckless or intentional misconduct.

(e) [Repealed, Sec. 2 ch 92 SLA 2003].

(f) [Repealed, Sec. 2 ch 92 SLA 2003].

So, bottom line, it looks like AK has a liberal statue on providing first aid compared to some other states. Which makes sense given how rural and remote a lot of the state is.

Section D requires you to avoid reckless misconduct, which is probably the easiest trap to fall into provided that you avoid the laundry list in section C. From a casual reading of Good Samaritan Law, it looks like you need to meet a few guidelines.

• Imminent Peril. Only render aid if the victim is in imminent peril. An example given would be pulling someone from a car wreck when there is no fire, and no compelling reason to remove them from the car.
• Level of Training. Act in accordance with your level of training.
• Good Faith. Act in good faith without expectation of compensation.

Based on this reading, I think some of hte items that I wasn't sure about would be legit.

Quik-Clot is in widespread civilian usage now. A NY paramedic received an award for saving a life with it. DHS issues it to federal agencies. Many state and local agencies that can afford it stock these new dressings. It saves lives.

NPAs are also in common civilian usage. They're easy to learn how to use and I have my training certificate to show that I know what I'm doing.

So, I think both of those items can be included in the kit. Are they first resort treatment? Probably not. Is it good to have them and never need them? Absolutely.

N.B. - I am not a lawyer and do not provide legal advice.