THIS SECTION WAS ASSIGNED BY THE CODE COMMISSIONER IN THE 2018 REGULAR SESSION, EFFECTIVE UPON ADOPTION OF RULES BY THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH. THIS IS NOT IN THE CURRENT CODE SUPPLEMENT.

(a) Any youth athletics association that sponsors or conducts sports training or high risk youth athletic activities for children age 14 years and younger shall require all coaches and athletics personnel to complete an online or residence course approved by the Department of Public Health, if available at no cost, which provides information and awareness of actions and measures that may be used to decrease the likelihood that a youth athlete will sustain a serious injury while engaged or participating in a high risk youth athletic activity.

(b) Any youth injury mitigation and information course required to be taken by a coach or athletics personnel under this section, at a minimum, shall provide information on the following subjects:

(1) Emergency preparedness, planning, and rehearsal for traumatic injuries.

(2) Concussions and head trauma.

(3) Heat and extreme weather related injury familiarization.

(4) Physical conditioning and training equipment usage.

(5) Heart defects and abnormalities leading to sudden cardiac death.

(c) Any individual required to take an injury mitigating course under this section shall complete the course within 30 days of becoming actively engaged in, or serving as, athletics personnel or coach for the association.

(d) Any youth athletic association that conducts high risk youth athletic activities or events that requires coaches and athletics personnel to complete an injury mitigating course under this section shall maintain a record of individual course completion for as long as that individual serves as athletic personnel or coach for the association.

(e) The course requirement under this section shall be an annual requirement to be completed not later than the anniversary of the date on which the individual became actively engaged in serving as athletic personnel or coach for the association.

(f) All licensed and certified athletic trainers, doctors, nurses, first responders, and health care professionals with acute traumatic life support training shall be exempt from the course requirement under this section.

(g) This chapter may not be construed to eliminate the involvement of athletic trainers at youth athletic events.

(h) This chapter shall not be construed to impose any additional liability upon political subdivisions of this state.

(i) Athletics personnel and coaches shall be entitled to a defense from liability for any injury sustained by a youth athlete as a result of participation in a high risk youth athletic activity upon establishing that they completed the injury mitigation and information course described in Section 3(a) and that they reasonably conformed their conduct to the safety techniques and methods identified in such injury mitigation and information course.

(j) The Department of Public Health shall within 180 days of enactment of this chapter adopt rules, not inconsistent with this chapter, for purposes of implementing, enforcing, and administering this chapter.

(Act 2018-496, §3.)