II 

Calendar No. 501 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 808 

To provide protections for certain sports medicine professionals who provide 

certain medical services in a secondary State. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 4, 2017 

Mr. THUNE (for himself, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. PORTMAN, Mr. BOOZMAN, Mr. 

GRASSLEY, Mr. COTTON, Mr. WICKER, Mr. ROUNDS, Ms. MURKOWSKI, 

Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. MANCHIN, Mrs. ERNST, Mr. HOEVEN, Mr. ROBERTS, 

Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. LANKFORD, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. KING, Mrs. 

MCCASKILL, Mr. YOUNG, Mr. CASSIDY, Mr. DONNELLY, Mr. COONS, Ms. 

WARREN, Ms. SMITH, Mr. MORAN, and Ms. COLLINS) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 

Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

JULY 9, 2018 

Reported by Mr. ALEXANDER, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To provide protections for certain sports medicine professionals who provide certain medical services in a secondary State. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Sports Medicine Licen3 sure Clarity Act of 2017’’. 

4 SEC. 2. PROTECTIONS FOR COVERED SPORTS MEDICINE 

5 PROFESSIONALS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a covered sports 

7 medicine professional who has in effect medical profes8 sional liability insurance coverage and provides in a sec9 ondary State covered medical services that are within the 

10 scope of practice of such professional in the primary State 

11 to an athlete or an athletic team (or a staff member of 

12 such an athlete or athletic team) pursuant to an agree13 ment described in subsection (b)(4) with respect to such 

14 athlete or athletic team— 

15 (1) such medical professional liability insurance 

16 coverage shall cover (subject to any related premium 

17 adjustments) such professional with respect to such 

18 covered medical services provided by the professional 

19 in the secondary State to such an individual or team 

20 as if such services were provided by such profes21 sional in the primary State to such an individual or 

22 team; and 

23 (2) to the extent such professional is licensed 

24 under the requirements of the primary State to pro25 vide such services to such an individual or team, the 

26 professional shall be treated as satisfying any licenVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:16 Jul 09, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S808.RS S808

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1 sure requirements of the secondary State to provide 

2 such services to such an individual or team. 

3 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act, the following defini4 tions apply: 

5 (1) ATHLETE.—The term ‘‘athlete’’ means— 

6 (A) an individual participating in a sport7 ing event or activity for which the individual 

8 may be paid; 

9 (B) an individual participating in a sport10 ing event or activity sponsored or sanctioned by 

11 a national governing body; or 

12 (C) an individual for whom a high school 

13 or institution of higher education provides a 

14 covered sports medicine professional. 

15 (2) ATHLETIC TEAM.—The term ‘‘athletic 

16 team’’ means a sports team— 

17 (A) composed of individuals who are paid 

18 to participate on the team; 

19 (B) composed of individuals who are par20 ticipating in a sporting event or activity spon21 sored or sanctioned by a national governing 

22 body; or 

23 (C) for which a high school or an institu24 tion of higher education provides a covered 

25 sports medicine professional. 


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1 (3) COVERED MEDICAL SERVICES.—The term 

2 ‘‘covered medical services’’ means general medical 

3 care, emergency medical care, athletic training, or 

4 physical therapy services. Such term does not in5 clude care provided by a covered sports medicine 

6 professional— 

7 (A) at a health care facility; or 

8 (B) while a health care provider licensed to 

9 practice in the secondary State is transporting 

10 the injured individual to a health care facility. 

11 (4) COVERED SPORTS MEDICINE PROFES12 SIONAL.—The term ‘‘covered sports medicine profes13 sional’’ means a physician, athletic trainer, or other 

14 health care professional who— 

15 (A) is licensed to practice in the primary 

16 State; 

17 (B) provides covered medical services, pur18 suant to a written agreement with an athlete, 

19 an athletic team, a national governing body, a 

20 high school, or an institution of higher edu21 cation; and 

22 (C) prior to providing the covered medical 

23 services described in subparagraph (B), has dis24 closed the nature and extent of such services to 


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1 the entity that provides the professional with li2 ability insurance in the primary State. 

3 (5) HEALTH CARE FACILITY.—The term 

4 ‘‘health care facility’’ means a facility in which med5 ical care, diagnosis, or treatment is provided on an 

6 inpatient or outpatient basis. Such term does not in7 clude facilities at an arena, stadium, or practice fa8 cility, or temporary facilities existing for events 

9 where athletes or athletic teams may compete. 

10 (6) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

11 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 

12 meaning given such term in section 101 of the High13 er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001). 

14 (7) NATIONAL GOVERNING BODY.—The term 

15 ‘‘national governing body’’ has the meaning given 

16 such term in section 220501 of title 36, United 

17 States Code. 

18 (8) PRIMARY STATE.—The term ‘‘primary 

19 State’’ means, with respect to a covered sports medi20 cine professional, the State in which— 

21 (A) the covered sports medicine profes22 sional is licensed to practice; and 

23 (B) the majority of the covered sports 

24 medicine professional’s practice is underwritten 


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1 for medical professional liability insurance cov2 erage. 

3 (9) SECONDARY STATE.—The term ‘‘secondary 

4 State’’ means, with respect to a covered sports medi5 cine professional, any State that is not the primary 

6 State. 

7 (10) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

8 the several States, the District of Columbia, and 

9 each commonwealth, territory, or possession of the 

10 United States. 

11 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

12 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Sports Medicine Licen13 sure Clarity Act of 2017’’. 

14 SEC. 2. PROTECTIONS FOR COVERED SPORTS MEDICINE 

15 PROFESSIONALS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a covered sports med17 icine professional who has in effect medical professional li18 ability insurance coverage and provides in a secondary 

19 State covered medical services that are within the scope of 

20 practice of such professional in the primary State to an 

21 athlete or an athletic team (or a staff member of such an 

22 athlete or athletic team) pursuant to an agreement de23 scribed in subsection (b)(4) with respect to such athlete or 

24 athletic team— 


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1 (1) such medical professional liability insurance 

2 coverage shall cover (subject to any related premium 

3 adjustments) such professional with respect to such 

4 covered medical services provided by the professional 

5 in the secondary State to such an individual or team 

6 as if such services were provided by such professional 

7 in the primary State to such an individual or team; 

8 and 

9 (2) to the extent such professional is licensed 

10 under the requirements of the primary State to pro11 vide such services to such an individual or team, the 

12 professional shall be treated as satisfying any licen13 sure requirements of the secondary State to provide 

14 such services to such an individual or team to the ex15 tent the licensure requirements of the secondary State 

16 are substantially similar to the licensure requirements 

17 of the primary State. 

18 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section 

19 shall be construed— 

20 (1) to allow a covered sports medicine profes21 sional to provide medical services in the secondary 

22 State that exceed the scope of that professional’s li23 cense in the primary State; 

24 (2) to allow a covered sports medicine profes25 sional to provide medical services in the secondary 


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1 State that exceed the scope of a substantially similar 

2 sports medicine professional license in the secondary 

3 State; 

4 (3) to supersede any reciprocity agreement in ef5 fect between the two States regarding such services or 

6 such professionals; 

7 (4) to supersede any interstate compact agree8 ment entered into by the two States regarding such 

9 services or such professionals; or 

10 (5) to supersede a licensure exemption the sec11 ondary State provides for sports medicine profes12 sionals licensed in the primary State. 

13 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act, the following defini14 tions apply: 

15 (1) ATHLETE.—The term ‘‘athlete’’ means— 

16 (A) an individual participating in a sport17 ing event or activity for which the individual 

18 may be paid; 

19 (B) an individual participating in a sport20 ing event or activity sponsored or sanctioned by 

21 a national governing body; or 

22 (C) an individual for whom a high school 

23 or institution of higher education provides a cov24 ered sports medicine professional. 


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1 (2) ATHLETIC TEAM.—The term ‘‘athletic team’’ 

2 means a sports team— 

3 (A) composed of individuals who are paid 

4 to participate on the team; 

5 (B) composed of individuals who are par6 ticipating in a sporting event or activity spon7 sored or sanctioned by a national governing 

8 body; or 

9 (C) for which a high school or an institu10 tion of higher education provides a covered 

11 sports medicine professional. 

12 (3) COVERED MEDICAL SERVICES.—The term 

13 ‘‘covered medical services’’ means general medical 

14 care, emergency medical care, athletic training, or 

15 physical therapy services. Such term does not include 

16 care provided by a covered sports medicine profes17 sional— 

18 (A) at a health care facility; or 

19 (B) while a health care provider licensed to 

20 practice in the secondary State is transporting 

21 the injured individual to a health care facility. 

22 (4) COVERED SPORTS MEDICINE PROFES23 SIONAL.—The term ‘‘covered sports medicine profes24 sional’’ means a physician, athletic trainer, or other 

25 health care professional who— 


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1 (A) is licensed to practice in the primary 

2 State; 

3 (B) provides covered medical services, pur4 suant to a written agreement with an athlete, an 

5 athletic team, a national governing body, a high 

6 school, or an institution of higher education; and 

7 (C) prior to providing the covered medical 

8 services described in subparagraph (B), has dis9 closed the nature and extent of such services to 

10 the entity that provides the professional with li11 ability insurance in the primary State. 

12 (5) HEALTH CARE FACILITY.—The term ‘‘health 

13 care facility’’ means a facility in which medical care, 

14 diagnosis, or treatment is provided on an inpatient 

15 or outpatient basis. Such term does not include facili16 ties at an arena, stadium, or practice facility, or tem17 porary facilities existing for events where athletes or 

18 athletic teams may compete. 

19 (6) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

20 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the mean21 ing given such term in section 101 of the Higher Edu22 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001). 

23 (7) LICENSE.—The term ‘‘license’’ or ‘‘licen24 sure’’, as applied with respect to a covered sports 

25 medicine professional, means a professional that has 


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1 met the requirements and is approved to provide cov2 ered medical services in accordance with State laws 

3 and regulations in the primary State. Such term may 

4 include the registration or certification, or any other 

5 form of special recognition, of an individual as such 

6 a professional, as applicable. 

7 (8) NATIONAL GOVERNING BODY.—The term ‘‘na8 tional governing body’’ has the meaning given such 

9 term in section 220501 of title 36, United States 

10 Code. 

11 (9) PRIMARY STATE.—The term ‘‘primary State’’ 

12 means, with respect to a covered sports medicine pro13 fessional, the State in which— 

14 (A) the covered sports medicine professional 

15 is licensed to practice; and 

16 (B) the majority of the covered sports medi17 cine professional’s practice is underwritten for 

18 medical professional liability insurance coverage. 

19 (10) SECONDARY STATE.—The term ‘‘secondary 

20 State’’ means, with respect to a covered sports medi21 cine professional, any State that is not the primary 

22 State. 

23 (11) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

24 the several States, the District of Columbia, and each 


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1 commonwealth, territory, or possession of the United 

2 States. 

3 (12) SUBSTANTIALLY SIMILAR.—The term ‘‘sub4 stantially similar’’, with respect to the licensure by 

5 primary and secondary States of a sports medicine 

6 professional, means that both the primary and sec7 ondary States have in place a form of licensure for 

8 such professionals that permits such professionals to 

9 provide covered medical services. 


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Calendar No. 501 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 808 

A BILL 

To provide protections for certain sports medicine 

in a secondary State. professionals who provide certain medical services 

JULY 9, 2018 

Reported with an amendment 


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