An Act to amend and reenact §§ 2.2-3705.5, 32.1-276.6, 54.1-2523, and 54.1-2525 of the Code of Virginia; to amend the Code of Virginia by adding in Chapter 7.2 of Title 32.1 a section numbered 32.1-276.12; and to repeal Chapter 19 of Title 32.1 of the Code of Virginia, consisting of a section numbered 32.1-372, relating to Health Coordination Network Program; patient data collection.
HB1019 revises Virginia law governing the Health Coordination Network Program and related patient data collection. The bill adds a new section in Title 32.1 to establish or restructure the program’s framework, amends existing provisions tied to health-professions data and confidentiality, and repeals the prior standalone chapter that had governed the program. It also makes conforming changes to the Virginia Freedom of Information Act exemption for health and social services records, preserving confidentiality for health records, licensing and monitoring information, prescription monitoring data, and other sensitive records.
In practical terms, the bill appears aimed at updating how health-related information is collected, shared, protected, and administered across state agencies and health-professions entities. It preserves broad nondisclosure rules for medical and regulatory records while allowing limited access in specified circumstances, such as by the subject of the records or authorized guardians/parents in certain cases. The legislation affects the Department of Health Professions, behavioral health and social services records, and the Prescription Monitoring Program, among others.
The bill amends §§ 2.2-3705.5, 32.1-276.6, 54.1-2523, and 54.1-2525, adds § 32.1-276.12, and repeals former § 32.1-372, thereby reorganizing the statutory basis for the Health Coordination Network Program. Its legal effect is to replace the repealed chapter with new code language and to align confidentiality and disclosure rules across public records, health-professions oversight, and patient data systems. Affected parties include state health agencies, licensing boards, the Prescription Monitoring Program, patients, practitioners, and custodians of health and social services records.
The available record shows no committee transcript or recorded votes, so there is no documented floor or committee debate to gauge partisan or stakeholder sentiment. Based on the enacted chapter text, the bill appears to have been treated as a technical and administrative update to health-data governance and confidentiality rules rather than a highly controversial policy change. The fact that it was approved into law suggests sufficient support for the restructuring and privacy-related provisions.
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials. The most likely areas for concern, based on the text, would be the scope of patient data collection, the handling of confidential health records, and the balance between privacy and agency access to information. Any disagreement would likely center on whether the new framework expands or constrains access to sensitive health information, but the record provided does not identify any particular opponents or disputed amendments.