655.001 Definitions. In this chapter:

(1) “Board of governors" means the board created under s. 619.04 (3).

(2) “Claimant" means the person filing a request for mediation under s. 655.44 or 655.445.

(4) “Department" means the department of health services.

(6) “Fiscal year" means the period beginning on July 1 and ending on the following June 30.

(7) “Fund" means the injured patients and families compensation fund under s. 655.27.

(7m) “Graduate medical education program" means a program approved by the medical examining board that provides postgraduate medical education and training for a person who possesses a diploma from a medical or osteopathic college or who has the equivalent education and experience from a foreign medical school recognized by the Education Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates.

(7t) “Health care practitioner" means a health care professional, as defined in s. 180.1901 (1m), who is an employee of a health care provider described in s. 655.002 (1) (d), (e), (em), or (f) and who has the authority to provide health care services that are not in collaboration with a physician under s. 441.15 (2) (b) or under the direction and supervision of a physician or nurse anesthetist.

(8) “Health care provider" means a person to whom this chapter applies under s. 655.002 (1) or a person who elects to be subject to this chapter under s. 655.002 (2).

(8c) “Insurer" includes a foreign insurer that is a risk retention group that issues health care liability insurance under this chapter.

(9) “Nurse anesthetist" means a nurse who is licensed under ch. 441 or who holds a multistate license, as defined in s. 441.51 (2) (h), issued in a party state, as defined in s. 441.51 (2) (k), and who is certified as a nurse anesthetist by the American association of nurse anesthetists.

(10) “Patient" means an individual who received or should have received health care services from a health care provider or from an employee of a health care provider acting within the scope of his or her employment.

(10m) “Physician" means a medical or osteopathic physician licensed under ch. 448.

(11) “Principal place of practice" means any of the following:

(a) The state in which a health care provider furnishes health care services to more than 50 percent of his or her patients in a fiscal year.

(b) The state in which a health care provider derives more than 50 percent of his or her income in a fiscal year from the practice of his or her profession.

(12) “Representative" means the personal representative, spouse, parent, guardian, attorney or other legal agent of a patient.

(13) “Respondent" means the person alleged to have been negligent in a request for mediation filed under s. 655.44 or 655.445.

(14) “Self-insurance plan" means a plan approved by the commissioner to self-insure health care providers against medical malpractice claims in accordance with this chapter. A “self-insurance plan" may provide coverage to a single health care provider or affiliated health care providers.

History: 1975 c. 37, 79; 1977 c. 26 s. 75; 1977 c. 131; 1977 c. 203 s. 106; Sup. Ct. Order, 88 Wis. 2d xiii (1979); 1979 c. 124, 185, 355; 1983 a. 189 s. 329 (5); 1985 a. 340; 1987 a. 27, 182, 264, 403; 1989 a. 187; 1991 a. 214; 1993 a. 473; 1995 a. 27 s. 9126 (19); 1999 a. 22; 2001 a. 52; 2003 a. 111; 2005 a. 36, 51; 2007 a. 20 s. 9121 (6) (a); 2013 a. 20; 2015 a. 55; 2017 a. 135.

Chapter 655 is a constitutionally valid enactment. State ex rel. Strykowski v. Wilkie, 81 Wis. 2d 491, 261 N.W.2d 434 (1978).

Medical malpractice panels: The Wisconsin approach. Kravat. 61 MLR 55.

A summary of the new statutes governing medical malpractice. Saichek. WBB Oct. 1986.

Testing the constitutionality of medical malpractice legislation: The Wisconsin medical malpractice act of 1975. 1977 WLR 838.