Sloan v. Voluntary Ambulance Service

826 S.W.2d 296, 37 Ark. App. 138, 1992 Ark. App. LEXIS 192
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arkansas
DecidedMarch 11, 1992
DocketCA 91-123
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 826 S.W.2d 296 (Sloan v. Voluntary Ambulance Service) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Sloan v. Voluntary Ambulance Service, 826 S.W.2d 296, 37 Ark. App. 138, 1992 Ark. App. LEXIS 192 (Ark. Ct. App. 1992).

Opinion

Melvin Mayfield, Judge.

This is an appeal from a decision of the Workers’ Compensation Commission which held that appellant was not entitled to benefits under the Arkansas Workers’ Compensation Act. We affirm.

In 1985 the Benton County Quorum Court established the Northeast Benton County Emergency Medical Service District (hereinafter EMSD) to provide emergency medical services to the residents of Benton County. Voluntary Ambulance Service (hereinafter VAS) was hired to provide the required medical services. Appellant, Bruce Sloan, worked as a volunteer emergency medical technician for VAS. It is undisputed that he had no regular hours and received no pay; his regular, full-time job was with the USDA inspecting meat.

On May 15, 1987, VAS held a fund-raiser at which its employees played the volunteer fire department employees in a volleyball match. During one of the games appellant received an injury to his ankle and was unable to return to work with the USDA until the following January. He filed this claim for workers’ compensation benefits seeking medical expenses, temporary total disability, permanent partial disability and attorneys’ fees. The claim was controverted in its entirety.

Although the administrative law judge held that appellant was an employee of VAS, he also held that VAS was a not-for-profit corporation and was therefore exempt from liability under the workers’ compensation law by the exception set out in Ark. Code Ann. § 1 l-9-102(3)(A)(iii) (1987), “Institutions maintained and operated wholly as public charities.” He also held that both VAS and Benton County were exempt from the Workers’ Compensation Act under Ark. Code Ann. §§ 21-13-101 — 21-13-111 (1987), “State and local government volunteers.” He did not address appellant’s claim that in the case of an uninsured subcontractor, the primary contractor, which appellant contended was Benton County, was liable. The full Commission affirmed and adopted the decision of the law judge.

On appeal appellant first argues that the Commission erred in finding that VAS was exempt from the mandates of the Arkansas Workers’ Compensation Act under Ark. Code Ann. § ll-9-102(3)(A)(iii). That statute provides in pertinent part:

(3) “Employment” means:
(A) Every employment carried on in the state in which three (3) or more employees are regularly employed by the same employer in the course of business, except:
(iii) Institutions maintained and operated wholly as public charities.

In affirming the decision of the law judge, the Commission relied upon the criteria set out in Marion Hospital Ass’n v. Lanphier, 15 Ark. App. 14, 688 S.W.2d 322 (1985), where we said:

In its decision holding that appellant was not within the exception to employment contained in Ark. Stat. Ann. §81-1302(c)(1) [now Ark. Code Ann. § 11-9-102(1987)], the Commission listed the following factors it believed should be followed in determining whether or not a particular hospital is an institution “maintained and operated wholly as” a public charity:
(1) Do the articles of incorporation provide that the purpose of the hospital is charitable in nature? '
(2) Is the corporation maintained for the private gain, profit or advantage of its organizers, officers or owners either directly or indirectly?
(3) Does the hospital have capital stock or does it have provisions for distributing dividends or making a profit?
(4) Does the hospital derive its funds from public and private charity as well as those who are able to pay?
(5) Do all ‘profits’ go toward maintaining the hospital and extending and enlarging its charity?
(6) Is the hospital open to all who are not pecuniarily able?
(7) Are those patients who are unable to pay received into the hospital without charge, without discrimination on account of race, creed or color and are they given the same care as those who are able to pay?
(8) Is the hospital exempt from the payment of both state and federal taxes?

15 Ark. App. at 16.

Appellant concedes that the articles of incorporation of V AS state that it is a not-for-profit corporation, but contends that “the fact that an entity says it is ‘charitable in nature’ should be given little if no weight by a reviewing court.” Appellant then argues that VAS fails to meet factor number four because it does not derive all its funds from public and private charity. On that point there was evidence that, pursuant to the ordinance which created the Northeast Benton County Emergency Medical Service District, VAS was partially funded by a $15.00 assessment on the personal property of each household in the district, and a 10% penalty was assessed if any household failed to pay the EMSD fee when due. Appellant admits that VAS derives some of its funds from voluntary contributions and fund raising events. However, he contends that because of the $15.00 fee charged each household in the county, which is not voluntary, VAS does not derive all of its funds from public or private charity. Appellant also argues that VAS fails to meet factor number seven because those people who are unable to pay the $15.00 assessment are penalized 10% and thus are clearly “not ‘given the same care as those who are able to pay.’ ”

In reply, VAS points out that in the Marion Hospital case the court’s primary reliance was upon such factors as the hospital’s exemption from state and federal taxes and its operation so that none of the profits were distributed to the incorpora-tors or officers but were funneled back into maintaining the hospital and enlarging its charity. VAS also points to the Commission’s decision which stated:

VAS is a nonprofit corporation under the laws of Arkansas and is organized exclusively for charitable, religious, educational and scientific purposes. The articles of incorporation provide that in the event of dissolution, all property of VAS is to be distributed exclusively for charitable purposes to worthy nonprofit organizations. VAS derives its funds from donations, fund raising events, a $15.00 assessment from each household within the emergency medical services district, and payments for services actually rendered. VAS is exempt from liability for state and federal taxes. All income or profit is used exclusively for the payment of costs, maintenance, and the enlargement of its charity. VAS provides its services to anyone within or without the emergency medical services district, regardless of race, creed, color or ability to pay. Based on these facts, we find that VAS is immune from liability for claimant’s injury under Ark. Code Ann. §11-9-102(3)(A) (iii).

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Bluebook (online)
826 S.W.2d 296, 37 Ark. App. 138, 1992 Ark. App. LEXIS 192, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/sloan-v-voluntary-ambulance-service-arkctapp-1992.