Provides that outdoor tethering of a companion animal shall not meet the requirement that an animal be given adequate shelter, unless the animal is actively engaged in an agricultural or hunting activity, when it is conducted(i) when the temperature is 32 degrees Fahrenheit or lower or 85 degrees Fahrenheit or higher; (ii) during a heat advisory; or (iii) during a severe weather warning. The bill provides that a tether shall meet the requirement that an animal be given adequate space if it is four times the length of the animal or 15 feet in length, whichever is greater, and does not cause injury or pain or weigh more than one-tenth of the animal's body weight. The bill exempts agricultural animals from existing provisions related to tethering. The bill also authorizes any locality to adopt ordinances that parallel and make more stringent the state law regarding the care of companion animals.
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Eliminates the requirement for a practice agreement with a patient care team physician for a licensed nurse practitioner who has completed the equivalent of at least five years of full-time clinical experience and submitted an attestation from his patient care team physician stating (i) that the patient care team physician has served as a patient care team physician on a patient care team with the nurse practitioner pursuant to a practice agreement; (ii) that while a party to such practice agreement, the patient care team physician routinely practiced with a patient population and in a practice area included within the category for which the nurse practitioner was certified and licensed; and (iii) the period of time for which the patient care team physician practiced with the nurse practitioner under such a practice agreement. The bill requires that a nurse practitioner authorized to practice without a practice agreement (a) only practice within the scope of his clinical and professional training and limits of his knowledge and experience and consistent with the applicable standards of care, (b) consult and collaborate with other health care providers based on the clinical conditions of the patient to whom health care is provided, and (c) establish a plan for referral of complex medical cases and emergencies to physicians or other appropriate health care providers. The bill requires (1) the Boards of Medicine and Nursing to jointly promulgate regulations governing the practice of nurse practitioners without a practice agreement; (2) the Department of Health Professions, by November 1, 2020, to report to the General Assembly a process by which nurse practitioners who practice without a practice agreement may be included in the online Practitioner Profile maintained by the Department of Health Professions; and (3) the Boards of Medicine and Nursing to report information related to the practice of nurse practitioners without a practice agreement that includes certain data, complaints and disciplinary actions, and recommended modifications to the provisions of this bill to the Chairmen of the House Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions and the Senate Committee on Education and Health and the Chairman of the Joint Commission on Health Care by November 1, 2021.
Provides that the cost of textbooks will be included in the calculation of the amount of Virginia National Guard education grants, and clarifies that the eligibility requirement of a two-year remaining obligation is from the last day of the semester or term for which the grant is awarded. This bill incorporates
Directs the Department of Veterans Services to establish a program in which military medical personnel may practice and perform certain delegated acts that constitute the practice of medicine or nursing under the supervision of a licensed physician or podiatrist or the chief medical officer of an organization participating in such program, or his designee who is licensed by the Board of Medicine and supervising within his scope of practice. The bill allows the chief medical officer of an organization participating in such program to, in consultation with the chief nursing officer of such organization, designate a registered nurse licensed by the Board of Nursing or practicing with a multistate licensure privilege to supervise military personnel participating in such program while engaged in the practice of nursing. This bill is identical to