§ 74.152.Unlicensed Medical Personnel

Title 4. Liability in Tort · Chapter 74. Medical Liability · Subchapter D. Emergency Care · Last amended 2003 · Last verified August 29, 2026

In one sentenceSection 74.152 protects unlicensed emergency medical service personnel administering good faith emergency care unless wilfully or wantonly negligent, and applies whether or not they are paid.

Full Text of § 74.152

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Persons not licensed or certified in the healing arts who in good faith administer emergency care as emergency medical service personnel are not liable in civil damages for an act performed in administering the care unless the act is wilfully or wantonly negligent. This section applies without regard to whether the care is provided for or in expectation of remuneration.

End

Plain-English Summary

A companion to the Good Samaritan provision for one group, and it differs in a way that matters.

Persons not licensed or certified in the healing arts who in good faith administer emergency care as emergency medical service personnel are not liable in civil damages unless the act is wilfully or wantonly negligent.

The last sentence is the difference: this section applies without regard to whether the care is provided for or in expectation of remuneration.

The general Good Samaritan provision excludes paid care. This one does not — a paid EMT is protected exactly as a volunteer is.

The reason is plain. EMS personnel respond to emergencies as their job, under conditions no one chooses, with limited equipment and incomplete information. Withdrawing the protection because they are paid would remove it from precisely the people who attend the most emergencies.

"Not licensed or certified in the healing arts" identifies the group. This section covers EMS personnel who are not physicians or nurses; a licensed provider giving emergency care is governed by the other provisions of this subchapter.

The section was renumbered from Section 74.002 in the 2003 reorganisation of the chapter.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are paramedics protected from liability in Texas?

Persons not licensed or certified in the healing arts who in good faith administer emergency care as EMS personnel are not liable in civil damages unless wilfully or wantonly negligent.

Does being paid remove the protection?

No. This section applies without regard to whether the care is provided for or in expectation of remuneration, unlike the general Good Samaritan provision.

Who does it cover?

Emergency medical service personnel who are not licensed or certified in the healing arts.

Amendment History

Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 959, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1985.
Renumbered from Sec. 74.002 and amended by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 204, Sec. 10.01, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.

Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from Texas Legislature Online (statutes.capitol.texas.gov). Enacted by the Texas Legislature. Current through May 14, 2026. Last verified August 29, 2026. · Official source