The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.Kansas Legislature establishes legal hierarchy for medical surrogates and provider guidelines
Last action · April 10, 2026: Died in Committee
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What This Bill Proposed
This bill enacts the Kansas surrogate medical decisions act to establish a priority order for identifying who may make healthcare decisions for an incapacitated patient. It sets provider guidelines, outlines conscience objections for medical facilities, and grants civil and criminal immunity to providers and surrogates acting in good faith.
The measure determines who legally controls medical treatments, including life-sustaining care, for incapacitated patients without s, directly affecting family members, healthcare providers, and medical facilities across Kansas.
- The bill was introduced by the House Committee on Judiciary during the 2025-2026 legislative session and ultimately failed to pass out of committee. context
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
patients
Patients who lack medical capacity have their decision-making hierarchy, surrogate rules, and advance directives governed by the act.
healthcare providers
Healthcare providers must follow specific identification procedures, record determinations in clinical records, and are granted immunity when complying with valid decisions.
medical care facilities
Medical facilities must handle ethics review processes, record surrogate designations, and manage patient transfers if conscience objections arise.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who has primary authority to make medical decisions if a patient lacks capacity?
Can a medical facility refuse to honor a surrogate's healthcare decision?
What happens if there is a dispute among family members who have equal priority as surrogates?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died in committee.
Procedural history
3 actions- Apr 10, 2026HouseDied in Committee
- Feb 5, 2026HouseIntroducedIntroduced
- Feb 5, 2026HouseCommitteeReferred to House Committee on Judiciary
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Codification of Healthcare Surrogacy
The bill creates a statutory framework for medical surrogate prioritization where no advance directive or guardian exists under Kansas law.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.kslegislature.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 65)
- Controversy45Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz25Current news / social attention level
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