44.105. Governor-declared state of emergency, suspension of certain state law provisions, when--volunteers, responsibilities of--staffing authority of the department.

Governor-declared state of emergency, suspension of certain state lawprovisions, when--volunteers, responsibilities of--staffingauthority of the department.

44.105. 1. In a governor-declared state of emergency, the departmentof health and senior services may suspend any provision of chapters 195 and334, RSMo, pertaining to dispensing medications. Persons who dispensemedications under this section shall be trained by the department of healthand senior services and shall dispense medications under the supervision ofa licensed health care provider according to the department's strategicnational stockpile plan.

2. The department may develop effective citizen involvement torecruit, train, and accept the services of volunteers to supplement theprograms administered by the department in dispensing medications to thepopulation in the event of an emergency.

3. Volunteers recruited, trained, and accepted by the departmentshall comply with the department's strategic national stockpile plan indispensing medications.

4. The department may:

(1) Provide staff as deemed necessary for the effective managementand development of volunteer dispensing sites deployed in response to agovernor-declared emergency;

(2) Provide or assure access to professional staff as deemednecessary for the effective training and oversight of volunteers;

(3) Develop and provide to all volunteers written rules governing thejob descriptions, recruitment, screening, training responsibility,utilization, and supervision of volunteers; and

(4) Educate volunteers to ensure that they understand their dutiesand responsibilities.

5. Non-health care professional volunteers, whose liability is nototherwise protected by section 44.045 shall be deemed unpaid employees andshall be accorded the protection of the legal expense fund and otherprovisions of section 105.711, RSMo.

6. As used in this section, "volunteer" means any person who, of hisor her own free will, performs any assigned duties for the department ofhealth and senior services with no monetary or material compensation.

(L. 2007 H.B. 579)

Effective 6-08-07