Health insurance; coverage for colorectal cancer screening. Requires health insurers to provide coverage for examinations and laboratory tests related to colorectal cancer screening in accordance with the most recently published recommendations established by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force for colorectal cancer screening for which a rating of A or B is in effect with respect to the individual involved. The bill requires such coverage to include coverage of a follow-up colonoscopy after a positive noninvasive stool-based screening test or direct visualization screening test. The bill prohibits such coverage from being subject to any deductible, coinsurance, or any other cost-sharing requirements for services received from participating providers. The provisions of the bill apply to individual or group accident and sickness insurance policies, individual or group accident and sickness subscription contracts, or health care plans delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed in the Commonwealth on and after January 1, 2025.
Charter; City of Colonial Heights. Amends the charter of the City of Colonial Heights by updating language related to the duties of the City Manager and City Attorney, including elimination of the City Attorney's duties to the school board and school superintendent. The bill also includes the update or repeal of various outdated provisions related to appropriations, purchasing, and capital improvements. This bill is identical to SB 112.
Military leaves of absence for employees of Commonwealth or political subdivisions; professional firefighters. Provides that any person who is employed by the Commonwealth or a political subdivision of the Commonwealth as a professional firefighter shall receive paid leaves of absence for up to 388 work hours that a leave of absence is required, regardless of whether such amount of work hours exceeds 21 workdays per federal fiscal year, during which such person is engaged in federally funded military duty, to include training duty, or is called forth by the Governor for military duty. Under current law, employees of the Commonwealth or a political subdivision of the Commonwealth are limited to an eight-hour, 21-workday cap, which equates to seven workdays for such employees working in 24-hour shifts. The 388-work-hour cap would provide leave for a little over 16 workdays for such employees working in 24-hour shifts. This bill is identical to SB 401.
School building evacuation plans, policies,and protocols; students with mobility impairments. Requires anydivisionwide or public elementary or secondary school-specific schoolbuilding evacuation plan, policy, or protocol to include provisionsthat seek to maximize the opportunity for students with mobilityimpairments to evacuate the school building alongside their non-mobility-impairedpeers.
Virginia Commission for the Arts; membership. Reduces the membership of the Virginia Commission for the Arts from 13 to nine members and requires at least one member to be appointed from each of the eight superintendent's regions. Current law requires at least one but no more than two members to be appointed from each congressional district in the Commonwealth. This bill is identical to SB 530.
Health insurance; ethics and fairness in carrier business practices. Makes various changes to requirements governing the business practices of health carriers in the processing and payment of claims. The bill prescribes criteria for what constitutes a "clean claim." The bill prohibits a carrier from imposing any retroactive denial of a previously paid claim or in any other way seeking recovery or refund of a previously paid claim unless the carrier specifies in writing the specific claim or claims for which the retroactive denial is to be imposed or the recovery or refund is sought and the carrier has provided a written explanation of why the claim is being retroactively adjusted. The bill provides that the time limit for a retroactive denial is 12 months; however, a provider and a carrier may agree in writing that recoupment of overpayments by withholding or offsetting against future payments may occur after such 12-month limit. The bill requires carriers, beginning no later than July 1, 2025, to make available an electronic means for providers to determine whether an enrollee is covered by a health plan that is subject to the State Corporation Commission's jurisdiction. The bill provides that the ethics and fairness requirements apply to the carrier and provider, regardless of any vendors, subcontractors, or other entities that have been contracted by the carrier or the provider to perform their duties. The bill provides that if a carrier's claim denial is overturned following completion of a dispute review, the carrier is required to consider the claims impacted by such decision as clean claims and all applicable laws related to the payment of a clean claim apply. The bill prohibits a provider from filing a complaint with the State Corporation Commission for failure to pay claims unless such provider has made a reasonable effort to confer with the carrier in order to resolve the issues related to all claims that are under dispute. Finally, the bill requires all provider contracts, amendments, and notices and certain other communications to be delivered electronically. This bill is identical to HB 123.
Towed vehicles; stolen or misused vehicle; police report. Requires the owner of a vehicle that was stolen, illegally used, or used without his permission and subsequently subject to a law-enforcement initiated tow to provide the report number and the name of the law-enforcement agency receiving the report that the motor vehicle was stolen, illegally used, or used without his permission to the towing facility where the vehicle is being stored in order to remove the vehicle without paying towing and storage fees.
Admission to bail; act of violence. Provides that a judicial officer who admits a person to bail who is charged with an act of violence shall notify the attorney for the Commonwealth for the jurisdiction in which such person's case is filed either before or simultaneous with such person's grant of bail or release. The bill provides that such notice may be made by facsimile or other electronic means.
Capital outlay plan. Updates the six-year capital outlay plan for projects to be funded entirely or partially from general fund-supported resources. This bill is identical to SB 585.
Alcoholic beverage control; summary suspension;timeline. Provides that when special agents of the Board of Directorsof the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority are conductingan initial investigation for purposes of summary suspension and the48-hour time limit for such initial investigation expires on a Saturday,Sunday, or legal holiday, the special agents may submit their findingsfrom such initial investigation any time prior to the close of businesson the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday.
Quarters for magistrates; certain minimum standards for security and accessibility. Establishes certain minimum standards for ensuring security and accessibility in quarters for magistrates. This bill is a recommendation of the Judicial Council of Virginia and is identical to HB 679.
Local government; standardization of public notice requirements for certain meetings, hearings, or intended actions. Standardizes the frequency with which and length of time in which notices of certain meetings, hearings, and other intended actions of localities must be published. The notice provisions included in the bill are organized into three groups: (i) publication required at least seven days before the meeting, hearing, or intended action; (ii) publication required twice, with the first notice appearing no more than 28 days before and the second notice appearing no less than seven days before the meeting, hearing, or intended action; and (iii) publication required three times, with the first notice appearing no more than 35 days before and the third notice appearing no less than seven days before the meeting, hearing, or intended action. The bill also standardizes descriptive information in such notices related to (a) proposing, amending, or repealing ordinances; (b) local budget adoption; and (c) zoning ordinances and planning-related actions. This bill is identical to HB 1488.
