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2005 SESSION

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Senate Committee on Education and Health

Chairman: H. Russell Potts, Jr.

Clerk: Jocelyn Lance
Date of Meeting: February 17, 2005
Time and Place: 8:00 a.m., Senate Room B, General Assembly Building
Health Bills will be heard first

H.B. 455 Dietitians; licensure.

Patron: McQuigg

Health professions; licensure of dietitians.  Requires dietitians to be licensed by the Board of Medicine. The "practice of dietetics" is defined as the integration and application of principles derived from the sciences of nutrition, biochemistry, food, physiology, management and behavioral and social sciences to achieve and maintain health through the provision of nutrition care services that shall include (i) assessing the nutrition needs of individuals and groups based upon appropriate biochemical, anthropomorphic, physical, and dietary data to determine nutrient needs and recommend appropriate intake including enteral and parenteral nutrition; (ii) establishing priorities, goals, and objectives that meet nutrition needs and are consistent with available resources; (iii) providing dietetic nutrition counseling by advising and assisting individuals or groups on appropriate nutrition intake by integrating information from the nutrition assessment with information on food and other sources of nutrients and meal preparation consistent with cultural background and socioeconomic status; (iv) developing, implementing, and managing nutrition care delivery systems; and (v) evaluating, making changes in, and maintaining standards of quality in food and nutrition care services. The bill provides that the practice of dietetics includes medical nutrition therapy. The Board of Medicine is given the authority to establish criteria for licensure that include (a) at least a bachelors degree in human nutrition, nutrition education, foods and nutrition, food systems management, dietetics, or public health nutrition or a related field from an accredited college that meets the requirements of the Commission on Dietetic Registration; (b) at least 900 hours of supervised experience approved by the Commission on Dietetic Registration; (c) passage of the examination for registration administered by the Commission on Dietetic Registration or current registration with the Commission on Dietetic Registration; and (d) documentation that the applicant for licensure has not had his license or certification as a dietitian suspended or revoked and is not the subject of any disciplinary proceedings in another jurisdiction. Exceptions to the licensure requirement are provided for (1) any student performing activities related to an educational program under the supervision of a licensed dietitian or any person completing the supervised practice required for licensure; (2) a registered dietetic technician working under the supervision and direction of a licensed dietitian; (3) a government employee or a person under contract to the government acting within the scope of such employment or contract; (4) any health professional licensed or certified under this title when engaging in the profession for which he is licensed or any person working under the supervision of such a professional; (5) a certified teacher employed by or under contract to any public or private elementary or secondary school or institution of higher education; (6) any person with management responsibility for food service department policies, procedures or outcomes in any food service department in any program or facility licensed by the Commonwealth; (7) any person who does not hold himself out to be a dietitian who furnishes general nutrition information on food, food products, or dietary supplements or explains to customers about food, food products, or dietary supplements in connection with marketing and distribution of food or food products; or (8) any person who provides weight control, wellness, or exercise services involving nutrition provided the program has been reviewed by a licensed dietitian, no change is initiated without prior approval of the dietitian, and consultation is available from a licensed dietitian. No dietitian employed as such prior to June 30, 2004, will be required to comply with licensure until July 1, 2006. Finally, the bill creates an Advisory Board on Dietitians that expires July 1, 2007.

H.B. 1524 Abortion; anesthesia for fetal pain, penalty

Patron: Black

Anesthesia for fetal pain. Observes that fetuses over the gestational age of 20 weeks feel pain and provides that failure, subject to exceptions, of a physician to administer anesthesia to such a fetus prior to an abortion is a Class 1 misdemeanor.

H.B. 1573 Public schools; student dress codes.

Patron: Albo

Student dress codes.  Directs the Board of Education to develop guidelines for  school boards in establishing student dress codes designed to prohibit any apparel or style of dress that may promote illegal gang activity.

H.B. 1589 Nonpublic schools; transportation services.

Patron: Reese

Transportation services for nonpublic schools. Permits local school boards to enter into agreements with nonpublic schools in the school division to provide pupil transportation for a fee to and from the nonpublic schools.

H.B. 1615 School safety audits; requirements.

Patron: Fralin

School safety audits.  Requires the Virginia Center for School Safety, within the Department of Criminal Justice Services, to develop a list of items to be reviewed and evaluated in school safety audits; a standardized report format for school safety audits; any additional reporting criteria; and procedures for report submission, which may include instructions for electronic submission. In addition, the Center is to (i) provide technical assistance and training to school divisions in the development of school safety audits; (ii) collect and analyze all school safety audits; (iii) provide each school division with a written assessment based on these audits; and (iv) report trends and recommendations to the Secretaries of Education and Public Safety.

H.B. 1726 Higher education institutions; SCHEV to adopt guidelines for textbook sales.

Patron: Oder

Higher education; textbook sales and bookstores.  Prohibits employees at Virginia public institutions of higher education from demanding or receiving any payment, loan, subscription, advance, deposit of money, services or anything, present or promised, as an inducement for requiring students to purchase a specific textbook required for coursework or instruction.  An exception allows the employee to receive (i) sample copies, instructor's copies, or instructional material, not to be sold; and (ii) royalties or other compensation from sales of textbooks that include such instructor's own writing or work.

The measure also requires the governing boards to implement procedures for making available to students in a central location and in a standard format on the relevant institutional website listings of textbooks required or assigned for particular courses at the institution.

Finally, institutions maintaining a bookstore supported by auxiliary services or operated by a private contractor must post the listing of such textbooks when the relevant instructor or academic department identifies the required textbooks for order and subsequent student purchase.

H.B. 1810 Abortion; sale of post-abortion fetal tissue unlawful, penalty.

Patron: Marshall, R.G.

Sale or purchase of post-abortion fetal tissue unlawful; penalty. Provides that any person who sells or buys fetal tissue resulting from an induced abortion is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.

H.B. 1816 Student fees; annual reporting of use.

Patron: Marshall, R.G.

Annual reporting of the use of student fees. Requires each public two- and four-year institution of higher education in the Commonwealth to publish annually a descriptive report detailing the (i) purpose, amount, use, and distribution of student fees assessed each semester or during an academic year; and (ii) the name of each organization, including the nature of the organization's activity, that receives funding of $100 or more from student fees. The bill also requires institutions to post the annual report on its website to facilitate access and availability of the report to students enrolled at the institution and their parents.

H.B. 1824 Infants; screening tests required after delivery.

Patron: Frederick

Newborn screening. Broadens the Commonwealth's newborn screening program for genetic disorders to include approximately 30 or more conditions that cause mental retardation, serious disability, or death if left untreated. The screening tests to be included in Virginia's panel of disorders will be consistent with, but not necessarily identical to, the uniform condition panel recommended by the American College of Medical Genetics in its report, Newborn Screening: Toward a Uniform Screening Panel and System. Upon the issuance of a panel of recommended tests by the federal Department of Health and Human Services, Virginia's testing program will be consistent with, but not necessarily identical to, the federal guidance document. The Board of Health's regulations must include a list of conditions for which newborn screening tests are conducted pursuant to § 32.1-65, follow-up and referral protocols and necessary provisions to implement the newborn screening services, and any services available to the infants and children through the Children with Special Health Care Needs Program. The mandate for the increased testing will become effective on March 1, 2006; however, the Board of Health is required to promulgate emergency regulations. The second enactment clause of a 2002 Act of the General Assembly that required certain funding is repealed in order to ensure the integrity of the law. This bill incorporates HB 2511 and HB 2801.

H.B. 1912 Pledge of Allegiance; guidelines.

Patron: Cole

Pledge of Allegiance.  Requires the Board of Education, in its guidelines for Pledge recitation in the public schools, to include provisions addressing parental notification for minor students who decline to stand or to recite the Pledge.  Technical amendments remove reference to "legal guardian," as "parent," pursuant to § 22.1-1, includes guardians and other persons "having control or charge of a child."

H.B. 2034 Higher Education Reform Act of 2005.

Patron: Hamilton

Higher Education Reform Act of 2005. Requires public institutions of higher education (institutions) to develop six-year academic, financial and enrollment plans that outline tuition and fee estimates as well as enrollment projections. Such plans will be submitted to the State Council of Higher Education, the Governor, and the Chairs of the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance. In addition, the bill requires the Governor to establish an independent advisory board to develop and recommend administrative management standards for institutions. Among other things, the bill provides institutions that have formally committed to meet certain objective measures of performance with more flexibility in (i) disposing of real and person property, (ii) conveying and acquiring easements and leases, (iii) identifying vendors who are minority business enterprises, (iv) designating classification of administrative and faculty positions, and (v) supervising construction projects and inspecting for compliance with the Uniform Statewide Building Code.

H.B. 2036 Long-term care; to ensure coordinated, effective, and efficient services to older adults.

Patron: Hamilton

Long-term care services for older adults.  Provides generally that the Commonwealth shall seek to ensure coordinated, effective, and efficient long-term care services to older adults. The bill sets out the policy of the Commonwealth in providing such services.

H.B. 2104 Long-term care; preadmission screenings.

Patron: McQuigg

Long-term care preadmission screenings.  Provides that nurses, social workers, and physicians who are employees of a local area agency on aging may be part of the team to conduct Medicaid nursing home preadmission screenings.  Employees of the Department of Health, the local department of social services or local area agency on aging may not participate in screenings in which they could become the service provider.

H.B. 2198 Sewage sludge; program established to train employees for testing thereof.

Patron: Abbitt

Training for sewage sludge testers.  Requires the Board of Health and the Department of Health to establish a program to train employees of those local governments that have adopted a biosolids ordinance in the testing and monitoring of sewage sludge. The bill states what, at a minimum, the training shall include. The Health Department is authorized to charge trainees a reasonable fee to recover the costs of preparing course materials and providing facilities and instructors for the program.

H.B. 2236 Patient records; protection of health data by hospitals.

Patron: O'Bannon

Hospitals sharing patient health data.  Requires the Board of Health to implement regulations that require hospitals to have interoperability and sharing of patient health data through common data reporting formats and standardized methods of transmission while maintaining protections for the privacy of personal health information.  The law will not go into effect unless it is reenacted by the 2006 General Assembly.

H.B. 2237 Practitioner Self-Referral Act; exemption. 

Patron: O'Bannon

Practitioner Self-Referral Act; exemption.  Exempts from prohibited practitioner self-referrals law (i) the health services to be received by a patient referred by a practitioner to that practitioner's immediate family member's office or group practice when the referral is within the scope of practice and the treating practitioner to whom the patient is referred is duly qualified and licensed to provide the health services to be received and (ii) the primary purpose of the referral is to obtain the appropriate professional health services for the patient being referred and the primary purpose of the referral is not for the provision of certain designated health services.

H.B. 2238 Emergency medical services personnel training, response times, etc.; civil penalties.

Patron: O'Bannon

Board of Health regulations; emergency medical services personnel training, agency response times, and enforcement provisions; civil penalties.  Requires the State Board of Health to prescribe, in regulation, (i) training for emergency medical services personnel; (ii) collection and reporting of emergency response times; and (iii) enforcement provisions, including fines, to be assessed by the State Health Commissioner against any agency, or other entity found to be in violation of the emergency medical services statutes or regulations.  All amounts paid as fines are allocated to the emergency medical services special fund.

H.B. 2243 Medical care facilities certificate of public need; parties to the case.

Patron: O'Bannon

Medical care facilities certificate of public need; parties to the case.  Revises the designation of the parties to the case if an informal fact-finding conference is determined to be necessary by the Department of Health or is requested by a person seeking good cause standing.  In such cases, the designation of the parties to the case will include the relevant health planning agency.  In present law, the health planning agency is only a party to the case if its recommendation was to deny the application.

H.B. 2253 Emergency Medical Services Plan, statewide; new requirements, and deletion of cross references.

Patron: Bell

Statewide Emergency Medical Services Plan.  Adds several new requirements to the Statewide Emergency Medical Services Plan developed by the Board of Health. These requirements include (i) publishing the Plan, (ii) expanding paramedic and advanced life support training, (iii) establishing and maintaining a process for crisis intervention and peer support services for emergency medical services and public safety personnel, a statewide emergency medical services for children program, a statewide system of health and medical emergency response teams, and a program to improve dispatching of emergency medical services, and (iv) identifying and establishing best practices for managing agencies and improving response times. The bill also deletes an obsolete cross-reference relating to automated external defibrillators.

H.B. 2284 Family Access to Medical Insurance Security Plan; changes in benefits.

Patron: Brink

Children's health insurance through employer-sponsored health insurance programs.  Requires the Department of Medical Assistance Services to amend the Family Access to Medical Insurance Security Plan and related regulations to simplify the administration of its premium assistance program available to families with children eligible for FAMIS who have access to employer-sponsored health insurance coverage. The bill removes the requirement that the Plan provide wraparound benefits for benefits not included in the employer-sponsored health insurance benefit plan.

H.B. 2316 Nursing home bed projects; conditions for issuance of an amended certificate of public need..

Patron: Griffith

Certificate of Public Need; relocation of certain nursing home beds under limited circumstances.  Establishes criteria for limited relocation of nursing home beds for facilities under common ownership and control, if required criteria are met relating to occupancy rates, temporary staffing hours, and the origin of residents. The facility wishing to relocate beds must notify the Commissioner of Health of its intent to relocate the beds and the Commissioner is required to determine eligibility for the relocation and notify in writing the facility of his determination within 30 days of receipt of the notice of intent to relocate. The definition of "project" in the certificate of public need law must not constitute such relocations of nursing home beds.

H.B. 2347 Abortion clinics; localities to adopt ordinance requiring license.

Patron: Marshall, R.G.

Local licensing of abortion clinics.  Authorizes localities to adopt an ordinance requiring local licensing of abortion clinics. No person shall own, establish, conduct, maintain, manage or operate in an abortion clinic in any locality that has adopted such ordinance without obtaining a local license.  Any requirements of licensure pursuant to such ordinance shall be in addition to, not in lieu of, any other requirements imposed on such facilities by law or Board of Health regulation. "Abortion clinic" is defined as any facility, other than a hospital as defined in § 32.1-123, in which 25 or more first trimester abortions are performed in any 12-month period.

H.B. 2430 Health care services; safety and quality by physicians.

Patron: Hamilton

Health care provider data services.  Requires the Commissioner to negotiate and contract with a nonprofit organization (Virginia Health Information) for compiling, storing, and making available to consumers data collected on physicians about safety services and quality of health care services.  The board of directors of the nonprofit organization shall work with the Board of Medicine to determine the information to be collected and the costs thereof, and identify sufficient funding sources to appropriate to physicians for such collection.  The nonprofit organization shall assist the Board of Health in developing a quality of care or performance information set for physicians and in determining the process for collecting, compiling, and storing the information.  These provisions will not go into effect unless reenacted by the 2006 Session of the General Assembly.

H.B. 2431 Practitioners; information provided to patients.

Patron: Hamilton

Health professions; certain practitioner information provided to patients.  Upon request by a patient, requires doctors of medicine, osteopathy, and podiatry to inform patients about (i) procedures to access information on the doctor compiled by the Board of Medicine and (ii) if the patient is not covered by a health insurance plan that the doctor accepts or a managed care health insurance plan in which the doctor participates, the patient may be subject to the doctor's full charge which may be greater than the health plan's allowable charge.

H.B. 2451 Septic systems; validity of septic tank permits.

Patron: Suit

Validity of certain septic tank permits; waivers.  Excludes certain transfers of real property from the current provision that waivers granted for certain failing sewage systems are nontransferable and limits the waiver provisions to systems on real property with 1 to 4 dwelling units. Currently, whenever any onsite sewage system is failing and the Board's regulations for repairing the system impose (i) a requirement for treatment beyond the level of treatment provided by the existing onsite sewage system when operating properly or (ii) a new requirement for pressure dosing, the owner may request a waiver from such requirements. Currently, these waivers are void at the time of transfer or sale of the property. The bill provides that the nontransferability of such waivers shall only apply with respect to transfers by sale, exchange, installment land sales contract, or lease with the option to buy residential real property of not more than four dwelling units.  The bill also sets forth various disclosure and notification requirements.

H.B. 2461 Residential facilities; Board who regulates to provide name, etc. of contact person.

Patron: Nixon

Group homes or other residential facilities.  Requires the Boards who regulate group homes or other residential facilities for adults or children to provide to the relevant Department a name, address, and telephone number of a contact person to serve as the community relations liaison.

H.B. 2519 Immunization Information System (VIIS); established.

Patron: O'Bannon

Virginia Immunization Information System (VIIS).  Requires the Board of Health, to the extent funds are made available, to establish the Virginia Immunization Information System, a statewide immunization registry that consolidates patient immunization histories from birth to death into a complete, accurate, and definitive record that may be made available to participating health care providers throughout Virginia, to the extent funds are appropriated by the General Assembly or otherwise made available. The Board must promulgate regulations addressing voluntary participation, a secure system for data entry or delivery, incorporation of the data already reported on children's immunizations, the nature of the data to be reported, data-sharing agreements with other state and regional immunization registries, use of vital statistic data, requests for records in compliance with existing requirements, release of aggregate data without personal identifiers, and the use of the data in an epidemic or outbreak of a vaccine-preventable disease.

The bill also establishes the criteria for disclosure of protected health information to VIIS, i.e., ensuring the integrity of the health care system and prevention of disease. Immunity is provided to participants, the Board and Commissioner of Health, and employees of the Department of Health. Current responsibilities for record maintenance and obtaining immunization of children are retained as well as existing exemptions on religious or health grounds.

H.B. 2524 Drug Control Act; definitions of compounding and dispense.

Patron: O'Bannon

Drug Control Act; compounding. Excludes from the definition of "compounding" the mixing, diluting, or reconstituting of a manufacturer's product for the purpose of administration to a patient when performed by a practitioner of medicine or osteopathy licensed under Chapter 29 of Title 54.1 or a person supervised by such a practitioner. The bill further excludes from the definition of "dispense" the transportation of drugs mixed, diluted, or reconstituted in accordance with Chapter 34 of Title 54.1 to other sites operated by such practitioner or practitioner's medical practice for the purpose of administration of such drugs to patients of the practitioner or that practitioner's medical practice at such other sites. For practitioners of medicine or osteopathy, "dispense" only includes the provision of drugs by a practitioner to patients to take with them away from the practitioner's place of practice.  Emergency regulations are required.  This bill incorporates HB 2043.

H.B. 2588 Brown v. Board of Education Scholarship Program and Fund; created.

Patron: Melvin

Brown v. Board of Education Scholarship Program and Fund. Amends, reorganizes, and moves the statute creating the Brown v. Board of Education Scholarship Program and Fund to Title 30. Currently, a part of the law is codified in Title 23. The bill also (i) includes several technical amendments to provide clarity and consistency; (ii) reinstates language inadvertently omitted; (iii) prohibits the use of scholarship funds for theological education; (iv) authorizes the Awards Committee to seek, receive, and expend nonstate funds; and (v) resolves the issue of the separation of powers by requiring the State Council of Higher Education to advise and provide technical assistance to the Awards Committee in a manner consistent with its statutory responsibilities for higher education in the Commonwealth. Under the current law, the Scholarship Program and the Awards Committee are created within the legislative branch; however, administration of the Program is shared between the legislative and executive branch agencies. The bill also waives the Standards of Learning requirements and assessments for persons awarded a scholarship under the Program and who are enrolled in a preparation program for the General Education Development (GED) certificate or an adult basic education program for the high school diploma. Also, for the purpose of verifying the domicile of applicants, the Awards Committee is authorized to establish a list of acceptable documents consistent with those required to obtain a Virginia driver's license or identification card, and to access vital records. In addition, the Awards Committee must establish a protocol to facilitate the dual enrollment of eligible students in adult basic education programs and degree programs, and the conventional enrollment of such students in public and private two-year institutions of higher education. Further, the Awards Committee is charged to develop and implement a system that provides transition programs and services to prepare eligible students for academic success in GED preparation and adult basic education programs, and college.

The second enactment clause allows students who are enrolled in an approved education program when the Program expires to complete their education through the renewal of the scholarship, if they demonstrate satisfactory academic achievement. The third enactment clause delegates to the State Council of Higher Education the responsibility to review and approve applications for renewal of scholarship awards of students who were enrolled in approved education programs when the Program expired. The fourth enactment clause repeals Chapter 4.4:5 of Title 23, consisting of §§ 23-38.53:21 through 23-38.53:24, and Chapter 34 of Title 30, consisting of §§ 30-226 through 30-231. This bill has an emergency clause.

This bill is a recommendation of the Brown v. Board of Education Scholarship Awards Committee.

 

EMERGENCY

H.B. 2598 Funeral Directors and Embalmers, Board of; licensure.

Patron: Ware, O.

Department of Health Professions; Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers; licensing of funeral service providers and approval of resident trainees.  Removes the restriction on licensure of convicted felons. The bill also reduces the time in which a resident trainee may apply and take the examination for licensure and clarifies the time period in which a resident trainee may practice. The bill gives the Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers the authority to deny subsequent traineeships if the first traineeship is not completed within a certain time. The bill contains technical amendments.

H.B. 2601 Medical assistance services; establishing more restrictive asset transfer limit.

Patron: Landes

Medical assistance services; asset transfer limit waiver.  Permits the Department of Medical Assistance Services, when appropriate and practicable, to seek a waiver pursuant to § 1115 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. § 1315) from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to establish asset transfer limits that are more restrictive than those currently permitted under federal Medicaid law or regulations. Prior to submitting an application, the Director shall report on the limits on asset transfers in the proposed waiver.

H.B. 2602 No Child Left Behind Act; Board of Education to seek waiver.

Patron: Landes

No Child Left Behind Act; Board of Education to seek waiver.  Directs the Board of Education to examine the fiscal and other implications for the Commonwealth and local governments should Virginia withdraw from participation in the federal No Child Left Behind Act.  The Board must convey its findings from such examination to the House Committees on Education and Appropriations and the Senate Committees on Education and Health and Finance no later than November 1, 2005.

H.B. 2613 Student surveys and questionnaires; local school boards to acquire parental consent.

Patron: Hugo

Surveys and questionnaires of public school students.  Prohibits local school boards from administering questionnaires or surveys to public school students during the regular school day or at school-sponsored activities if such questionnaires or surveys seek disclosure of (i) the parents' political affiliations or beliefs; (ii) the social security numbers of the parents or student, except as may otherwise be required for admission and enrollment; (iii) the sexual behavior and attitudes of the student as well as his family members; or (iv) critical assessments of family members.  However, local school boards may administer questionnaires and surveys to students during the regular school day or at school-sponsored activities when the questionnaire or survey (i) is designed to elicit information that will assist the school division in improving service to students within the division or within a particular school and (ii) does not include information that may personally identify the parent or student.  Before administering any questionnaire or survey as permitted by this section, local school boards must make an affirmative finding as to the age-appropriateness of the questionnaire or survey.

H.B. 2656 Obstetrical and pediatric care; pilot programs in certain areas.

Patron: Hurt

Pilot programs for obstetrical and pediatric care in certain areas.  Permits the Board of Health to approve pilot programs to improve access to obstetrical and pediatric care in areas of the Commonwealth where these services are severely limited. Obstetrical care includes prenatal, delivery, and post-partum care. The pilot programs will be jointly developed and submitted to the Board by nurse practitioners licensed in the category of certified nurse midwife, certain perinatal centers as determined by the Board, obstetricians, family physicians, and pediatricians. Nurse practitioners licensed by the Boards of Medicine and Nursing in the category of nurse midwife who participate in a pilot program shall associate with perinatal centers recommended by the Board and physicians, but shall not be required to have physician supervision. The Department shall convene stakeholders, including nurse practitioners licensed by the Boards of Medicine and Nursing in the category of certified nurse midwife, pediatricians, and family physicians, to establish protocols to be used in the pilot programs no later than October 1, 2005. The pilot programs shall not provide or promote home births. The Department shall evaluate and report on the impact and effectiveness of the pilot programs in meeting the program goals and submit a report to the Joint Commission on Health Care by November 15, 2006, and annually thereafter. The bill requires the Boards of Medicine and Nursing, the Departments of Health Professions and Medical Assistance Services, and the Bureau of Insurance to provide assistance to the Department of Health in establishing and evaluating the pilot programs.  Finally, these provisions shall not become effective unless funded in the appropriation act.

H.B. 2784 Abortion clinics; regulation and licensure.

Patron: Reid

Licensure of abortion clinics; penalties.  Requires all abortion clinics, defined as any facility, other than a hospital or an ambulatory surgery center, in which 25 or more first trimester abortions are performed in any 12-month period, to be licensed and to comply with the requirements currently in place for ambulatory surgery centers effective July 1, 2005. The bill also places proposed and existing abortion clinics under the certificate of public need (COPN) law after July 1, 2005. Existing abortion clinics will be required to apply annually to the Board of Health to obtain an exemption by providing a rationale for being excluded. The Commissioner of Health will determine whether existing abortion clinics have demonstrated sufficient cause to be excluded from the COPN requirements according to certain criteria. The Commissioner is also empowered to deny, suspend or revoke the license upon finding the clinic is in violation of state or federal law or regulations.

H.B. 2796 Suicide prevention; lead agency to be Department of Mental Health, etc., report.

Patron: Baskerville

Youth suicide prevention. Clarifies that the Department of Health should consult with behavioral health authorities on the youth suicide prevention program for the Commonwealth, as well as develop and carry out comprehensive youth suicide prevention strategies.

H.B. 2804 Health care practitioners; immunity for making voluntary report regarding conduct or compentency.

Patron: Van Yahres

Civil immunity; persons making voluntary reports regarding health care practitioners.  Immunizes from civil liability any person who makes a voluntary report to the appropriate regulatory board within the Department of Health Professions regarding the unprofessional conduct or competency of any practitioner licensed, certified, or registered by that health regulatory board, unless he acts maliciously or in bad faith.  Current law immunizes those persons making reports required by law or pursuant to an investigation or testimony in a judicial or administrative proceeding.

H.B. 2826 Brain Injury Waiver; licensing authority.

Patron: Orrock

Brain Injury Waiver; licensing authority. Authorizes the Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services (DMHMRSAS) to license providers of services under the Medicaid Brain Injury Waiver and providers of residential services for persons with brain injury. The bill defines "brain injury" for waiver purposes and requires the Department of Rehabilitative Services to collaborate with DMHMRSAS in activities related to the licensing of Brain Injury Waiver service providers. The bill requires the State Board of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services to promulgate necessary regulations within 280 days of enactment.

H.B. 2832 Interscholastic & intercollegiate athletic ineligibility; use of anabolic steriods.

Patron: Marshall, R.G.

Interscholastic athletic ineligibility.  Provides that, upon disclosure, a public school student athlete who uses anabolic steroids during the training period immediately preceding or during the sport season of the school or college athletic team on which he is a member will be ineligible to participate in interscholastic athletic competition for two years, unless the steroid was prescribed by a licensed physician for a medical condition.  Student use of anabolic steroids during the training period immediately preceding or during the sport season of the school is required to be reported, unless the steroid was prescribed by a licensed physician for a medical condition. The bill also requires the Board of Education to suspend or revoke the administrative or teaching license of any person who knowingly and willfully with the intent to compromise the outcome of an athletic competition by procuring, selling, or administering anabolic steroids or causing these drugs to be procured, sold, or administered to students, or by failing to report student use of anabolic steroids.

H.B. 2857 Pharmacists; allows compounding under certain conditions, requirements.

Patron: Jones, S.C.

Drug Control Act; compounding. Conforms the compounding provisions in the Drug Control Act to the United States Pharmacopeia-National Formulary standards for pharmacy compounding.

H.B. 2866 Restructured Higher Education Financial and Administrative Operations Act; created, report.

Patron: Callahan

Restructured Higher Education Financial and Administrative Operations Act. Sets forth enabling legislation for the restructuring of public institutions of higher education (institutions) that will extend, upon the satisfaction of various conditions, autonomy, which includes but is not limited to, capital building projects, procurement and personnel, while providing oversight mechanisms and establishing certain expectations. Under the bill, three levels of autonomy will be available to all public institutions of higher education with the level of autonomy depending on each institution's financial strength and ability to manage day-to-day operations. The bill also requires such institutions to develop six-year academic, financial and enrollment plans that outline tuition and fee estimates as well as enrollment projections that are submitted to the State Council of Higher Education, the Governor, and the Chairs of the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance. The bill requires institutions to develop detailed plans for meeting statewide objectives, and accept a number of accountability measures, including meeting benchmarks related to accessibility and affordability. The bill further requires the Governor to establish an independent advisory board to develop and recommend administrative management standards for institutions.

H.B. 2868 Public schools; school boards to prohibit distribution of literature focused on sexual behavior.

Patron: Weatherholtz

School boards; authority to block use of school facilities by certain student groups.  Authorizes local school boards to prohibit the use of school facilities by any student club or other student group that encourages or promotes sexual activity by unmarried minor students.

H.B. 2870 Human rights committees, state & local; requires 1 appt. to each shall be a health care provider.

Patron: Lewis

State and local human rights committees.  Requires that at least one appointment to the state and each local human rights committee shall be a health care provider. These committees address alleged violations of human rights of consumers of public and private mental health, mental retardation and substance abuse services.

H.B. 2881 Children's group homes and residential facilities; summary suspension of licenses.

Patron: Nixon

Summary suspension of licenses of certain children's group homes and residential facilities.  Authorizes the Commissioner of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services to issue an order of summary suspension of a license to operate a group home or residential facility for children, including homes or facilities licensed under core licensure regulations, in cases of immediate and substantial threat to the health, safety, and welfare of residents.

H.B. 2910 Higher education; prohibits admission of illegal aliens to any public institutions in State.

Patron: Gear

Prohibiting admission of illegal aliens to public institutions of higher education.  Provides that persons who are unlawfully present in the country may not be admitted to any public institution of higher education in Virginia.