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ACROSS SESSIONS
- Subject Index: Since 1995
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Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.
2019 SESSION
Dunnavant, Suetterlein, Carrico, Barker, Lucas, Peake
Clerk: Patty Lung
Staff: Thomas Stevens
Date of Meeting: February 12, 2019
Time and Place: 8:30 am - Subcommittee Room 2, 5th Fl. Pocahontas Bldg.
Patron: Orrock
Health care professionals; advertising. Prohibits a health care professional from including in any advertisement a reference to marijuana, unless such advertisement is for the treatment of addiction or substance abuse. However, a person registered with the Board of Pharmacy to issue written certifications for the use of cannabidiol or THC-A oil may include such information in an advertisement.
Patron: Marshall
Pharmaceutical processors; employment; misdemeanors. Allows pharmaceutical processors to employ or permit to act as an agent of such pharmaceutical processor persons who have been convicted of certain drug and drug paraphernalia misdemeanors, except in cases where such conviction occurred within the last five years. The bill also requires that pharmaceutical processors adopt policies for pre-employment drug screening and regular, ongoing, random drug screening of employees.
Patron: Adams, D.M.
Department of Health Professions; disclosure of investigative information. Allows the Department of Health Professions and health regulatory boards to disclose otherwise confidential information related to disciplinary hearings to the Virginia Department of Education and the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia if such information relates to nursing or nurse aide education programs regulated by the Board of Nursing.
Patron: Herring
Requirements for issuing prescriptions; exceptions for public health practitioners. Authorizes practitioners contracted by the Department of Health and practitioners employed or contracted by a local health department to prescribe antibiotic therapy to the sexual partner of a patient diagnosed with a sexually transmitted disease without the physical examination normally required. Under current law, only employees of the Department of Health are so authorized. Additionally, the bill authorizes a practitioner, who is an employee of or contracted by the Department of Health or a local health department, to prescribe Schedule VI antibiotics and antiviral agents to other persons in close contact with a diagnosed patient without a bona-fide practitioner-patient relationship with the diagnosed patient when emergency treatment is necessary to prevent imminent risk of death, life-threatening illness, or serious disability.
Patron: Guzman
Board of Nursing; application for license or certification; military spouse; expedited review. Requires that the Board of Nursing expedite application processing, to the extent possible pursuant to current law, in cases in which an applicant for licensure or certification is licensed or certified in another state and is relocated to the Commonwealth pursuant to a spouse's official military orders.
Patron: Thomas
Physician assistants; licensure by endorsement. Authorizes the Board of Medicine to issue a license by endorsement to an applicant for licensure as a physician assistant who (i) is the spouse of an active duty member of the Armed Forces of the United States or the Commonwealth, (ii) holds current certification from the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants, and (iii) holds a license as a physician assistant that is in good standing, or that is eligible for reinstatement if lapsed, under the laws of another state, the District of Columbia, or a United States possession or territory.
Patron: Kilgore
Special volunteer license for limited practice. Provides that any qualified practitioner of the healing arts or other profession regulated by the Board of Medicine who does not regularly practice his profession in Virginia and who holds a current valid license or certificate to practice his profession in another state, territory, district, or possession of the United States may be issued a special volunteer license to render free health care in conjunction with a publicly supported, all-volunteer, nonprofit organization that sponsors the provision of health care to underserved populations in Virginia, subject to conditions set out in the bill. The bill directs the Board to promulgate regulations to implement the special volunteer license for limited practice. The bill also removes reporting requirements for dentists and dental hygienists volunteering to provide free health care for up to three consecutive days to an underserved area of the Commonwealth under the auspices of a publicly supported all-volunteer, nonprofit organization that sponsors the provision of health care to populations of underserved people.
Patron: Robinson
Board of Optometry; membership. Adds to the requirements for the five licensed optometrist members of the Board of Optometry that they be individuals who at the time of appointment (i) have met all requirements for practice as an optometrist and are qualified to engage in the full scope of the practice of optometry and (ii) are actively engaged in the delivery of clinical care to patients for an average of at least 20 hours per week.
Patron: Filler-Corn
Issuance of temporary licenses; individuals engaged in counseling residency. Directs the Board of Counseling to promulgate emergency regulations for the issuance of temporary licenses to individuals engaged in a counseling residency so that they may acquire the supervised, postgraduate experience required for licensure.
Patron: Landes
Practitioners of medicine, osteopathy, podiatry, or chiropractic; retiree license. Provides that the Board of Medicine may issue a retiree license to any doctor of medicine, osteopathy, podiatry, or chiropractic who holds a valid unrestricted license to practice in the Commonwealth upon receipt of a request and submission of the required fee. The bill provides that a person to whom a retiree license has been issued shall not be required to meet continuing competency requirements for the first biennial renewal of such license. The bill also provides that a person to whom a retiree license has been issued may only engage in the practice of medicine, osteopathy, podiatry or chiropractic for the purpose of providing charity care or in-home health care services to patients for whom travel is a barrier to receiving health care.
Patron: Tran
Administration of topical drugs; dental hygienists, physician assistants, and nurses. Authorizes a dental hygienist practicing under remote supervision to administer topical oral anesthetics, topical and directly applied antimicrobial agents for treatment of periodontal pocket lesions, and any other Schedule VI topical drug approved by the Board of Dentistry. Under current law, a dental hygienist must be practicing under general supervision to do so. Additionally, the bill authorizes a physician assistant, nurse, or dental hygienist to possess and administer topical fluoride varnish pursuant to an oral or written order or a standing protocol. Under current law, such possession and administration is limited to administration to children aged six months to three years and is required to conform to standards adopted by the Department of Health.
Patron: Plum
Department of Health Professions and health regulatory boards; information obtained in an investigation or disciplinary proceeding; authorized disclosures. Provides that provisions protecting the confidentiality of information obtained during an investigation or disciplinary hearing do not prohibit the disclosure of information about a suspected violation of state or federal law or regulation to state law enforcement. Under current law, such disclosure is authorized only to agencies within the Health and Human Resources Secretariat or to federal law-enforcement agencies. The bill also provides that investigative staff of agencies to which disclosure is authorized are not prohibited from interviewing fact witnesses, disclosing to fact witnesses the identity of the subject of the complaint or report, or reviewing with fact witnesses any portion of records or other supporting documentation necessary to refresh the fact witnesses' recollection.
Patron: Pillion
Electronic transmission of certain prescriptions; exceptions. Provides certain exceptions, effective July 1, 2020, to the requirement that any prescription for a controlled substance that contains an opioid be issued as an electronic prescription. The bill requires the licensing health regulatory boards of a prescriber to grant such prescriber a waiver of the electronic prescription requirement for a period not to exceed one year due to demonstrated economic hardship, technological limitations that are not reasonably within the control of the prescriber, or other exceptional circumstances demonstrated by the prescriber. The bill provides that a dispenser is not required to determine whether one of the exceptions applies when he receives a non-electronic prescription for a controlled substances containing opioids. The bill requires the Boards of Medicine, Nursing, Dentistry, and Optometry to promulgate regulations to implement the prescriber waivers. Finally, the bill requires the Secretary of Health and Human Resources to convene a work group to identify successes and challenges of the electronic prescription requirement and offer possible recommendations for increasing the electronic prescribing of controlled substances and to report to the Chairmen of the House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions and the Senate Committee on Education and Health by November 1, 2022.
Patron: Pillion
Pharmacy audits; pharmacy benefits managers. Requires that any contract between a carrier and its intermediary pursuant to which the intermediary has the right or obligation to conduct audits of participating pharmacy providers and any provider contract between a carrier and a participating pharmacy provider or its contracting agent pursuant to which the carrier has the right or obligation to conduct audits of participating pharmacy providers contain certain terms and provisions relating to audits and that will apply in the absence of fraud. The terms and provisions (i) require at least 14 days written notice before conducting the initial audit for each audit cycle; (ii) prohibit the initiation or scheduling of an onsite audit during the first five calendar days of any month or on a Monday; (iii) prohibit an onsite audit of a particular pharmacy location on behalf of a particular carrier more than once in a 12-month period; (iv) require each pharmacy shall be audited under the same standards and parameters as every other similarly situated pharmacy; (v) require any audit issues that involve clinical or professional judgment to be conducted by a pharmacist who has available for consultation a pharmacist licensed by the Commonwealth; (vi) require each audit to be conducted by a field agent who possesses the requisite knowledge and experience in pharmacy practice; (vii) require audits to be conducted in the Commonwealth in compliance with federal and state laws, rules and regulations; (viii) require prescriptions to be considered valid prescriptions if they are compliant with the then-current Board of Pharmacy rules and regulations and have been successfully adjudicated upon a clean claim submission; (ix) require electronic records and documentation to be acceptable for auditing under the same terms, conditions, and validation and for the same purposes as their paper analogs; (x) permit a pharmacy to use the historical records of a hospital, physician, or other authorized practitioner of the healing arts for drugs or medicinal supplies written and transmitted by any documented means of communication for purposes of validating the pharmacy record with respect to orders or refills of a legend or narcotic drug; (xi) require validation and documentation at the time of dispensing of appropriate days' supply and drug dosing to be based on manufacturer guidelines and definitions or, in the case of topical products or titrated products, based on the professional judgment of the pharmacist in communication with the patient or prescriber; (xii) require a pharmacy's usual and customary price for compounded medications to be considered the reimbursable cost unless the pricing methodology is published in the provider contract and signed by both parties or their agents; (xiii) prohibit a carrier or its intermediary from making charge backs or seeking recoupment from a pharmacy, or assessing or collecting penalties from a pharmacy, until the time period for filing an appeal to an initial audit report has passed or until the appeals process has been exhausted, whichever is later; (xiv) establish requirements for a preliminary audit report; (xv) require a pharmacy to be allowed at least 60 calendar days following receipt of the preliminary audit report in which to produce documentation to address any discrepancy found during an audit or to file an appeal; (xvi) establish time periods during which a final audit report containing claim level information for any discrepancy found and total dollar amount of claims subject to recovery is required to be delivered to the pharmacy or its pharmacy corporate office; (xvii) prohibit a carrier or its intermediary from recovering from the pharmacy payment of claims that is identified through the audit process to be the responsibility of another payer; (xviii) prohibit recoupment of amounts paid to a pharmacy for any claim shall be made solely on the basis of a prescriber's or patient's lack of response to a request made by a carrier or its intermediary; (xix) require a carrier or its intermediary to issue its initial audit findings in conformity with the laws of the Commonwealth; and (xx) prohibit a carrier or its intermediary from retroactively denying a claim in certain circumstances.
Patron: Hope
Regulation of licensed providers; Board of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services to require disclosure of certain information about employees. Directs the Board of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services to amend regulations governing licensed providers to require every licensed provider to provide a statement regarding the character, ability, and fitness for employment of a current or past employee or other individual currently or previously associated with the provider in a capacity that requires a criminal history background check to any other licensed provider with which the current or past employee has applied for employment or to fill a role that requires a criminal history background check upon receipt of a request for such information from the other licensed provider and written consent to the disclosure of such information executed by the current or past employee or other individual currently or previously associated with the provider in a capacity that requires a criminal history background check.
Patron: Edmunds
Lyme disease; disclosure of information to patients. Requires every laboratory reporting the results of a test for Lyme disease ordered by a health care provider in an office-based setting to include, together with the results of such test provided to the health care provider, a notice stating that the results of Lyme disease tests may vary and may produce results that are inaccurate and that a patient may not be able to rely on a positive or negative result from such test. Such notice shall also include a statement that health care providers are encouraged to discuss Lyme disease test results with the patient for whom the test was ordered. The bill also provides that a laboratory that complies with the provisions of the act shall be immune from civil liability absent gross negligence or willful misconduct.