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       Senate Engrossed
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  State of Arizona
  Senate
  Forty-fifth
  Legislature
  First Regular Session
  2001
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    SENATE BILL 1208
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AN ACT

AMENDING SECTION 12-570, ARIZONA REVISED STATUES; RELATING TO HEALTH CARE ACTIONS.

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 12-570, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

12-570. Malpractice settlement or award reporting; civil penalty; cost of notice and documents

A. If a medical malpractice action is settled or a court enters a monetary judgment, the plaintiff's attorney and the professional liability insurers shall provide the defendant's health profession regulatory board with the notice required under subsection B of this section, a copy of the complaint and a copy of either the agreed terms of settlement or the judgment. The attorney shall provide this notice and these documents within thirty days after a settlement is reached or a judgment is entered. For the purposes of this subsection, "health profession regulatory board" has the same meaning prescribed in section 32-3201.

B. The notice required by subsection A of this section shall contain the following information:

1. The name and address of each defendant.

2. The name and address of each plaintiff.

3. The date and location of the occurrence which created the claim.

4. A statement specifying the nature of the occurrence resulting in the malpractice action.

5. A copy of all expert witness depositions, a transcript of all expert witness court testimony or a written evaluation of the case by an expert witness. A PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY INSURER IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR PROVIDING THE INFORMATION REQUIRED BY THIS PARAGRAPH.

C. The notice required by subsection A of this section is not discoverable and not admissible as evidence.

D. An attorney who does not supply the information required by subsections A and B of this section within thirty days after the notice of settlement or judgment is due under subsection A of this section is subject to a civil penalty of five hundred dollars.

E. IF THE NOTICE AND DOCUMENTS PRESCRIBED IN THIS SECTION ARE PROVIDED TO THE BOARD OF MEDICAL EXAMINERS, THE BOARD SHALL PAY FOR THE COST OF THE NOTICE AND DOCUMENTS. THE COST FOR EACH PAGE OF THE NOTICE AND DOCUMENTS IS TWENTY-FIVE CENTS.

F. IF THE NOTICE AND DOCUMENTS PRESCRIBED IN THIS SECTION ARE PROVIDED TO THE BOARD OF OSTEOPATHIC EXAMINERS IN MEDICINE AND SURGERY, THE BOARD SHALL PAY FOR THE COST OF THE NOTICE AND DOCUMENTS. THE COST FOR EACH PAGE OF THE NOTICE AND DOCUMENTS IS TWENTY-FIVE CENTS.

Sec. 2. Effective date

Section 12-570, Arizona Revised Statutes, as amended by this act, is effective from and after June 30, 2003.