This table lists the federal and state policies that Catalyst staff and our partners are watching. Come back here often, as we will update these tables on a regular basis to reflect the latest information!
What We're Watching
| Number | Name | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Item 304 #6s | Increase Medicaid Dental Reimbursement | Senator Barker and Delegate Farris | Increase dental reimbursement rates by 30% for dentists providing care to Medicaid members. |
| Item 304 #40s | Medicaid to reimburse school-based vision services through FFS | Delegate Carr, Delegate Ware, and Senator McClellan | School-based vision services are currently not reimbursable through Medicaid due to technical issues. |
| Item 304 #53s | Fund ten psychiatric residency slots | Senator Deeds | Seek funding for ten psychiatric residency slots to help address the dearth of psychiatrists in Virginia. |
| Item 304 #37h | Medicaid Coverage of Anesthesia for Children's Dental Procedures | Delegate Brewer | DMAS shall amend the State Plan for Medical Assistance to authorize coverage for medically necessary general anesthesia and hospitalization or facility charges of a facility licensed to provide outpatient surgical procedures for dental care provided to a Medicaid enrollee who is determined by a licensed dentist in consultation with the enrollee treating physician to require general anesthesia and admission to a hospital or outpatient surgery facility to effectively and safely provide dental care to an enrollee age ten or younger. |
| Item 304 #19s | Medicaid Coverage of Anesthesia for Children's Dental Procedures | Senator Locke | Same as above, companion budget amendments. |
| SB62 | Require local school boards to offer certain health services in a school setting | Senator Favola | Establishes the School Health Services Committee to review and provide advice to the General Assembly and other policymakers regarding proposals that require local school boards to offer certain health services in a school setting. The bill requires the Committee to submit its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly and the Governor by October 1 of each year. |
| SB245 | Public hospitals; medical debt collection practices | Senator Hashmi | Requires the University of Virginia Medical Center (the Medical Center) and the Virginia Commonwealth University Health System Authority (the Authority) to make payment plans available to each person who incurs a debt related to medical treatment. The bill (i) requires that such payment plans be provided in writing and cap monthly payments at no more than five percent of the person's household income, (ii) provides that the first payment under such payment plan shall not be due until a date that is at least 90 days after the date on which treatment was provided or the date on which the person discharged, and (iii) provides that a person who has made at least 10 payments pursuant to the payment plan in a 12-month period shall be deemed to be in compliance with the payment plan. The bill also prohibits the Medical Center and the Authority from charging interest or late fees for medical debt, requires the Medical Center and Authority to make information available in writing in languages other than English spoken in the service area and via oral translation service for other languages, prohibits the Medical Center and the Authority from selling medical debt to any person other than an organization that purchases medical debt for the purpose of paying such debt in full, and requires the Medical Center and the Authority to establish a Financial Assistance Ombudsman Office to assist patients and other persons with issues related to financial assistance, payment plans, and debt collection. |
| SB270 | Administration of government; language access equity, report. | Senator Hashmi | Establishes the Interagency Language Access Working Group in the Office of the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion with the following membership: the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, the Director of the Office of the Children's Ombudsman, the Governor's Secretaries, and six nonlegislative citizen members representing organizations that represent individuals with language access needs. The Working Group is established for the purpose of maximizing state policies, resources, technical assistance, and procurement practices to further language access and equity in the Commonwealth and its state government agencies. The bill also requires each state agency to designate a language access coordinator who will be responsible for the agency's annual language access report, the requirements of which are set out in the bill. The Secretary of Administration is directed to establish criteria for state agencies to procure language interpretation and translation services and to establish a policy for compensating multilingual state employees who are required as part of their job to provide interpretation, translation, or other bilingual skills at least once a month. |
| SB426 | State plan for medical assistance services; remote patient monitoring. | Senator Dunnavant | Directs the Board of Medical Assistance Services to amend the state plan for medical assistance services to provide for the payment of medical assistance for remote patient monitoring services provided via telemedicine (i) for patients who have experienced an acute health condition and for whom the use of remote patient monitoring may prevent readmission to a hospital or emergency department, (ii) for patient-initiated asynchronous consultations, and (iii) for provider-to-provider consultations. |
| SB427 | Health insurance; provider credentialing; receipt of application. | Senator Dunnavant | Requires the protocols and procedures for the reimbursement of new provider applicants that are established by a carrier that credentials providers in its network to require that the carrier confirm receipt of such applicant's credentialing application with such applicant within 10 days of receiving the application. |
| SB436 | Board of Health; Statewide Telehealth Plan; Virginia Telehealth Network. | Senator Barker | Requires the Board of Health to consult with the Virginia Telehealth Network in amending and maintaining the Statewide Telehealth Plan. The bill requires the Board of Health to leverage the expertise of the Virginia Telehealth Network, or another Virginia-based nongovernmental organization focused on telehealth if the Virginia Telehealth Network is no longer in existence, to (i) provide direct consultation to any advisory groups and groups tasked by the Board with implementation and data collection, (ii) track implementation of the Statewide Telehealth Plan, and (iii) facilitate changes to the Statewide Telehealth Plan as accepted medical practices and technologies evolve. |
| SB484 | Children; comprehensive health care coverage program. | Senator McClellan | Directs the Department of Medical Assistance Services (the Department) to establish a program to provide state-funded comprehensive health care coverage for individuals in the Commonwealth who (i) are under 19 years of age, (ii) are not covered under a group health plan or health insurance coverage, and (iii) but for their immigration status would be eligible for medical assistance services through the Commonwealth's program of medical assistance services established pursuant to Title XIX or XXI of the Social Security Act. The bill also requires the Department to ensure that all program information is made available in a manner that is accessible to individuals with limited English proficiency through the provision of language access services, including oral interpretation and written translations, free of charge, and to ensure that information obtained by the program remains confidential and is not disclosed for any purpose not related to the administration of the program or any purpose related to civil immigration enforcement unless the subject of the information consents to such disclosure or the requesting agency presents a valid judicial order, subpoena, or warrant. |
| SB489 | Water quality funds; localities in fiscal stress. | Senator McClellan | Directs that, to the maximum extent practicable, at least 25 percent of the grant agreements entered into by the Department of Conservation and Recreation, at least 25 percent by the Department of Environmental Quality from the Water Quality Improvement Fund, and at least 25 percent of the grants from the Stormwater Local Assistance Fund be for projects in localities with high or above average fiscal stress. |
| SB590 | License to teach dentistry; foreign dental program graduates. | Senator Pillion | Allows the Board of Dentistry to grant, without examination, a faculty license to teach dentistry in an accredited dental program to a graduate of a dental school or college or the dental department of an institution of higher education in a foreign country that has been granted a certification letter from the dean or program director of an accredited dental program confirming that the applicant has clinical competency and clinical experience that meet the credentialing standards of the dental school with which the applicant is to be affiliated. The provisions of the bill expire on July 1, 2025. |
| HB22 | Fundamental right to be free from medical mandates | Delegate Walker | View Catalyst’s comments here. |
| HB158 | Governor; powers, limited duration of rules, regulations, and orders. | Delegate Byron | Provides that no rule, regulation, or order issued under this section shall have any effect beyond 45 days after the date of issuance. The bill states that unless the General Assembly takes action on the rule, regulation, or order within the 45 days during which the rule, regulation, or order is effective, the Governor shall thereafter be prohibited from issuing the same or a similar rule, regulation, or order relating to the same emergency. |
| HB191 | Health Workforce Development; creates position of Special Advisor to the Governor. | Delegate Hodges | Special Advisor to the Governor for Health Workforce Development; Virginia Health Workforce Development Fund. Creates the position of Special Advisor to the Governor for Health Workforce Development (the Special Advisor) in the Office of the Governor; directs the Virginia Health Workforce Development Authority to collaborate with the Special Advisor, employers of health and health science professionals, and institutions that provide education and training for health and health science professionals to better align education and training initiatives with evolving workforce needs; directs the Authority to coordinate with and seek opportunities to expand existing workforce development initiatives in the Commonwealth and partner with an institution of higher education in the Commonwealth to facilitate the sharing of information and resources and strengthen efforts to develop the health workforce in the Commonwealth; creates the Virginia Health Workforce Development Fund to support the work of the Authority and provide grants to regional health and health science workforce development initiatives; and directs the Authority to establish a process for the issuance of grants to regional health and health science workforce development initiatives. |
| HB229 | Directs VDH to collect and analyze information regarding social determinants of health | Delegate Coyner | Directs the Department of Health to collect and analyze information regarding social determinants of health, defined in the bill, and their impact on health risks and health outcomes of residents of the Commonwealth, and to make information regarding social determinants of health, their impact on health, and strategies for addressing social determinants of health to improve health outcomes available to the public on its website. |
| HB278 | Community health assessments and community health improvement pilot plans | Delegate Coyner | Directs the Department of Health to conduct a pilot program to evaluate the impact of community health assessments and community health improvement plans on the health of residents of the Commonwealth and to report annually by December 1 to the Governor and the Chairmen of the House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions and the Senate Committee on Education and Health regarding the pilot program and any changes in public resulting from the implementation of the pilot program. |
| HB353 | Unaccompanied homeless youth; consent to medical care. | Delegate Willett | Provides that except for the purposes of sterilization or abortion, a minor who is 14 years of age or older and who is an unaccompanied homeless youth shall be deemed an adult for the purpose of consenting to surgical or medical examination or treatment, including dental examination and treatment, for himself or his minor child. The bill describes evidence sufficient to determine that a minor is an unaccompanied homeless youth and provides that no health care provider shall be liable for any civil or criminal action for providing surgical or medical treatment to an unaccompanied homeless youth or his minor child without first obtaining the consent of his parent or guardian provided in accordance with the law, with the exception of liability for negligence in the diagnosis or treatment of such unaccompanied homeless youth. |
| HB393 | Water quality; consideration of economic or social development. | Delegate Willett | Requires the State Water Control Board to analyze the economic or social impact on residents who and communities that have historically been economically or socially disadvantaged when considering any project or development that would constitute a new or increased discharge of effluent into high quality water. |
| HB878 | Comprehensive health care coverage program. | Delegate Lopez | Directs the Department of Medical Assistance Services (the Department) to establish a program to provide state-funded comprehensive health care coverage for individuals in the Commonwealth who (i) are younger than 19 years of age, aged 65 years or older, or pregnant; (ii) are not covered under a group health plan or health insurance coverage; and (iii) but for their immigration status, would be eligible for medical assistance services through the Commonwealth's program of medical assistance services established pursuant to Title XIX and Title XXI of the federal Social Security Act. The bill also requires the Department to ensure that all program information is made available in a manner that is accessible to individuals with limited English proficiency through the provision of language access services, including oral interpretation and written translations, free of charge, and to ensure that information obtained by the program established by this section remains confidential and is not disclosed for any purpose not related to the administration of the program. |
| HB919 | Board of Health; regulations; maximum contaminant levels in water supplies and waterworks. | Delegate Orrock | Provides that the regulations that the Board of Health is required to adopt under current law establishing maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) in all water supplies and waterworks in the Commonwealth for (i) perfluorooctanoic acid, perfluorooctane sulfonate, and such other perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances as the Board deems necessary, (ii) chromium-6, and (iii) 1,4-dioxane shall become effective on or after July 1, 2025. |
| HB981 | Certain health professions; licensure by endorsement. | Delegate Scott | Requires the Boards of Dentistry, Medicine, and Nursing to grant an application by endorsement to any applicant who is licensed, certified, or registered in another state, the District of Columbia, or a United States territory or possession upon submission of evidence satisfactory to such board. Currently, the Boards of Dentistry, Medicine, and Nursing are authorized but not required to grant a license, certification, or registration by endorsement for applicants wishing to practice regulated professions. |
| HB987 | Medicaid; program information; accessibility. | Delegate Tran | Directs the Board of Medical Assistance Services to require every person that provides program information to ensure that all program information, defined in the bill, be made available in a manner that is accessible to (i) individuals with limited English proficiency through the provision of language access services, including oral interpretation and written translations, and (ii) individuals with disabilities through the provision of auxiliary aids services, when doing so is a reasonable step to providing meaningful access to health care coverage. The bill provides that language access services and auxiliary aids services shall be provided free of charge to such individuals and that information regarding how to receive the language access services and auxiliary aids services shall be included with program information documents on a website maintained by the Department of Medical Assistance Services and on the website of every agency of the Commonwealth and person with whom the Department has entered into a contract that disseminates program information. The bill also requires every person that makes program information available to use an objective readability measure approved by the Department to test the readability of its program information documents and requires such persons to make program information documents available to the Department for review upon request. Under current law, use of a specific readability formula is required and a minimum total readability score is prescribed. |
| HB1011 | Study of the occurrence of PFOA, PFOS, PFBA, PFHpA, PFHxS, PFNA. | Delegate Guzman | Directs the Commissioner of Health to convene a work group to study the occurrence of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorobutyrate (PFBA), perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA), perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS), perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), hexafluoropropylene oxide-dimer acid (HFPO-DA), perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA), perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA), and perfluorobutane sulfonic acid (PFBS), in drinking water in the Commonwealth. The work group shall report its findings and recommendations to the Governor and the Chairmen of the House Committees on Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources and Health, Welfare and Institutions and the Senate Committees on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources and Education and Health by December 1, 2023. |
| HB1012 | Children; comprehensive health care coverage program. | Delegate Tran | Directs the Department of Medical Assistance Services (the Department) to establish a program to provide state-funded comprehensive health care coverage for individuals in the Commonwealth who (i) are under 19 years of age, (ii) are not covered under a group health plan or health insurance coverage, and (iii) but for their immigration status would be eligible for medical assistance services through the Commonwealth's program of medical assistance services established pursuant to Title XIX or XXI of the Social Security Act. The bill also requires the Department to ensure that all program information is made available in a manner that is accessible to individuals with limited English proficiency through the provision of language access services, including oral interpretation and written translations, free of charge, and to ensure that information obtained by the program remains confidential and is not disclosed for any purpose not related to the administration of the program or any purpose related to civil immigration enforcement unless the subject of the information consents to such disclosure or the requesting agency presents a valid judicial order, subpoena, or warrant. |
| HB1049 | Administration of government; language access equity, report. | Delegate Tran | Establishes the Interagency Language Access Working Group in the Office of the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion with the following membership: the Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, the Director of the Office of the Children's Ombudsman, the Governor's Secretaries, and six nonlegislative citizen members representing organizations that represent individuals with language access needs. The Working Group is established for the purpose of maximizing state policies, resources, technical assistance, and procurement practices to further language access and equity in the Commonwealth and its state government agencies. The bill also requires each state agency to designate a language access coordinator who will be responsible for the agency's annual language access report, the requirements of which are set out in the bill. The Secretary of Administration is directed to establish criteria for state agencies to procure language interpretation and translation services and to establish a policy for compensating multilingual state employees who are required as part of their job to provide interpretation, translation, or other bilingual skills at least once a month. |
| HB 1071 | Hospitals; debt collection; determination of patient eligibility for financial assistance. | Delegate Tran | Requires every hospital to screen every patient to determine the patient's household income and whether the individual is eligible for medical assistance pursuant to the state plan for medical assistance, charity care, discounted care, or other financial assistance with the cost of medical care and provides that, notwithstanding any other provision of law, no hospital shall engage in extraordinary collection actions to recover a debt for medical services against any patient until such hospital has performed such screening. |
| HJ52 | Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission; study; Commonwealth's public health system. | Delegate Mullin | Directs the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission to study the Commonwealth's public health system, including the structure, organization, operations, and resources of the existing public health system and the effectiveness of the current public health system in meeting public health need, and develop recommendations for improving the Commonwealth's public health system to improve overall public health. |
| Included in the Governor’s proposed budget | Funding for the Office of Drinking Water | Restore unalloted funding for state match for the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Increases the general fund appropriation used as a match to draw down the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's grant funds for the Drinking Water Revolving Fund Grant. It also increases the nongeneral fund appropriation necessary to keep pace with the reimbursement and payment trends of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Safe Drinking Water Grant. | |
| Included in the Governor’s proposed budget | Fund a pilot project to remove barriers to Virginia’s mental health workforce | Provides one-time funds for a contract with the Virginia Health Care Foundation to pay for the costs of supervisory hours needed for licensure for individuals seeking advanced degrees in social work or counseling. Additionally, funds are provided for the costs of certification for licensed social workers or counselors who wish to become eligible to provide supervision services to others seeking licensure. | |
| Included in the Governor’s proposed budget | E-refferal system | $8,000,000 the first year and $8,000,000 the second year from the general fund shall be used to contract for an integrated e-referral system. Capabilities of the system shall include but not be limited to connecting government agencies, health care providers, and community-based partners to enable participants in the system to refer patients to public health and social services. |
