Sen. Siobhan Dunnavant

Creates a tax credit for a business that hosts a junior or senior in a Richmond City high school as an apprentice for a semester during the 2018-2019 or 2019-2020 academic year. The business would receive a $2,500 credit per student, per semester. Participation in the program would be limited to 25 students. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.

Directs the Department of Health, in partnership with the Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders Commission, the Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services, and the Alzheimer's Association, to incorporate in its existing, relevant public health outreach programs information (i) to educate health care providers on the importance of early detection and timely diagnosis of cognitive impairment, validated cognitive assessment tools, the value of a Medicare Annual Wellness visit for cognitive health, and the new Medicare care planning billing code for individuals with cognitive impairment and (ii) to increase understanding and awareness of early warning signs of Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia, the value of early detection and diagnosis, and how to reduce the risk of cognitive decline, particularly among persons in diverse communities who are at greater risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia. This bill incorporates

Provides that the prohibition on locating clinics for the treatment of persons with opiate addiction through the use of methadone or opioid replacements other than opioid replacements approved for the treatment of opioid addiction by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration within one-half mile of a public or private licensed day care center or a public or private K-12 school shall not apply to an applicant for a license to operate in its current location if the facility is within one-half mile of a public or private licensed day care center or a public or private K-12 school in Henrico County or the City of Richmond and has been licensed and operated as a facility to provide treatment for persons with opiate addiction through the use of methadone or other opioid replacements by another provider immediately prior to submission of the application for a license. This bill incorporates

Requires the Director of the Department of Health Professions to annually review controlled substance prescribing and dispensing patterns. The bill requires the Director to conduct such review in consultation with an advisory panel consisting of representatives from the relevant health regulatory boards, the Department of Health, the Department of Medical Assistance Services, and the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services. The bill requires the Director to make any necessary changes to the criteria for unusual patterns of prescribing and dispensing and report any findings and recommendations for best practices to the Joint Commission on Health Care by November 1 of each year. This bill is identical to

Provides that the Department of Health shall be responsible for stroke care quality improvement initiatives in the Commonwealth. Such initiatives shall include (i) establishing systems to collect data and information about stroke care in the Commonwealth, (ii) facilitating information and data sharing and collaboration among hospitals and health care providers to improve the quality of stroke care in the Commonwealth, (iii) requiring the application of evidence-based treatment guidelines for transitioning patients to community-based follow-up care following acute treatment for stroke, and (iv) establishing a process for continuous quality improvement for the delivery of stroke care by the statewide system for stroke response and treatment. The bill also directs the Department of Health to convene a group of stakeholders, which shall include representatives of (a) hospital systems, including at least one hospital system with at least six or more stroke centers in the Commonwealth, recommended by the Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association; (b) the Virginia Stroke Systems Task Force; and (c) the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, to advise on the implementation of stroke care quality improvement initiatives. The provisions of the bill making the Department of Health responsible for stroke care quality improvement initiatives in the Commonwealth have a delayed effective date of January 1, 2019. This bill is identical to

Allows the Director of the Department of Health Professions to disclose information about a specific recipient of covered substances who is a recipient of medical assistance services to a physician or pharmacist licensed in the Commonwealth or his designee who holds a multistate licensure privilege to practice nursing or a license issued by a health regulatory board within the Department of Health Professions and is employed by the Department of Medical Assistance Services, for the purpose of determining eligibility for and managing the care of the recipient in a Patient Utilization Management Safety or similar program.

Expands the list of certified stroke center designations for hospitals included in regional stroke triage plans to include comprehensive stroke centers, primary stroke centers with supplementary levels of stroke care distinction, and acute stroke-ready hospitals and adds the American Heart Association to the list of entities authorized to provide certification of such hospitals. This bill is identical to

Eliminates the surgical or invasive procedure treatment exception to the requirement that a prescriber request certain information from the Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) when initiating a new course of treatment that includes prescribing opioids for a human patient to last more than seven days. Under current law, a prescriber is not required to request certain information from the PMP for opioid prescriptions of up to 14 days to a patient as part of treatment for a surgical or invasive procedure. The bill has an expiration date of July 1, 2022. This bill is identical to