Health care provider panels; vertically integrated carriers; providers. Requires any vertically integrated carrier to offer participation in each provider panel or network established for each of the vertically integrated carrier's policies, products, and plans, including all policies, products, and plans offered to individuals, employers, and enrollees in state and federal government benefit programs, to every provider in the Commonwealth under the same terms and conditions that apply to providers under common control with the vertically integrated carrier. The measure requires that the offered participation (i) be without any adverse tiering or other financial incentives that may discourage enrollees from utilizing the services of the provider, (ii) include all sites and services offered by the provider, and (iii) take into account the different characteristics of different providers with regard to the range, nature, cost, and complexity of services offered. The measure prohibits an officer or director of a vertically integrated carrier from simultaneously serving as an officer or director of an entity that owns, operates, manages, or controls an acute care hospital located, in whole or in part, in the Commonwealth. The measure defines "vertically integrated carrier" as a health insurer or other carrier that owns an interest in, is owned by, or is under common ownership or control with an acute care hospital facility, excluding an entity that is under the ultimate control of or under common control with a public hospital.
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Health care provider panels; vertically integrated carriers; public hospitals. Requires any vertically integratedcarrier to offer to every public hospital participation in each providerpanel or network established for each of the vertically integratedcarrier's policies, products, and plans, including all policies,products, and plans offered to individuals, employers, and enrolleesin state and federal government benefit programs. The measure requiresthat the offered participation (i) be without any adverse tieringor other financial incentives that may discourage enrollees from utilizing the services of the public hospital and (ii) include allservices offered by the public hospital and any other entity owned,operated, or controlled by the public hospital. The bill defines"vertically integrated carrier" as a health insurer or other carrierthat owns an interest in, is owned by, or is under common ownershipor control with an acute care hospital facility, excluding an entitythat is under the ultimate control of or under common control witha public hospital.
Virginia Higher Education Funding Review Commission established; duties. Directs the Secretary of Education to convenethe Virginia Higher Education Funding Review Commission as an advisorycommission to provide advice and make recommendations on higher educationcosts, funding needs, and appropriations in Virginia, as specifiedin the bill, with the Secretary of Education serving ex officio withoutvoting privileges. The bill directs the Commission to consult withnational and state policy experts and institutional innovators inother states and consider trends in the implementation of variousoutcomes-based funding models and to account for institutional differences.The Commission shall also seek input from within the Commonwealth,including industry leaders, consumer advocacy groups, and representativesof public doctoral institutions, comprehensive institutions, andcomprehensive community colleges. The Commission shall submit a preliminaryreport and any related recommendations to the Governor and the Chairmenof the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committeeon Finance and Appropriations by November 1, 2020, with a final reportby July 1, 2021.
Certificate of public need; conditions; civil penalty. Defines "COPN-conditioned community care" as charity care provided to indigent persons and health care services to individuals eligible for benefits under Title XIX of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C § 1396 et seq. and (i) requires the Commissioner of Health to condition a certificate of public need on the agreement of the applicant to provide a level of community care to patients in the applicant's service area and establish the total amount of community care necessary to satisfy the condition; (ii) provides for imposition of a civil penalty of up to $100 per violation per day for failure to satisfy the conditions on a certificate of public need, but requires the Department of Health to waive the penalty in cases in which the certificate holder demonstrates, in accordance with regulations of the Board, that good faith efforts were made to comply with the conditions on a certificate but that the certificate holder was unable to satisfy the conditions of the certificate despite such good faith efforts; (iii) requires every certificate holder to develop a financial assistance policy that includes specific eligibility criteria and procedures for applying for charity care, which shall be provided to a patient at the time of admission or discharge or at the time services are provided, included with any billing statements sent to a patient, posted conspicuously in public areas of the medical care facility for which the certificate was issued, and posted on a website maintained by the certificate holder; and (iv) provides that when determining whether conditions imposed on a certificate of public need should be amended in response to a request submitted by the certificate holder, the Commissioner shall consider any changes in the circumstances of the certificate holder resulting from changes in the financing or delivery of health care services, including changes to the Commonwealth's program of medical assistance services, and any other specific circumstances of the certificate holder. The bill also requires the Department of Health to establish an expedited review for certain projects involving addition of imaging equipment, addition of a new ambulatory or outpatient surgery center, addition of operating rooms at an existing ambulatory or outpatient surgery center, and addition of psychiatric beds or conversion of existing beds at a medical care facility to psychiatric beds and requires the Board of Health to include in regulations governing the certificate of public need program a provision for the development of review criteria and standards for specific medical care facilities and health care services for each health planning region that take into account the unique needs and characteristics of such region.
Commending William H. Goodwin, Jr.
Virginia Urban Agriculture AdvisoryCouncil created; report. Creates the Virginia Urban AgricultureAdvisory Council as an advisory council in the legislative branchof state government to encourage urban agriculture and contributeto building a local food economy. The bill has an expiration dateof July 1, 2023.
C-PACE loans; residential dwellings and condominiums. Removes an exclusion for residential dwellings with fewer than fivedwelling units and condominium projects from certain requirementsrelated to a voluntary special assessment lien that secures a loanfor the initial acquisition and installation of clean energy, resiliency,or stormwater management improvements.
Electric energy; customer choice. Provides that all retail customers of electric energy within the Commonwealth will be permitted to purchase electricity from any supplier licensed to sell retail electric energy within the Commonwealth by January 1, 2023. The bill requires, by January 1, 2022, the State Corporation Commission to promulgate all regulations it deems necessary to ensure the orderly transition to a competitive market for electric energy in the Commonwealth. The bill provides that such regulations (i) provide for the customer choice for electricity for all customer classes, thereby deregulating the retail sale and pricing of the generation component of electricity service; (ii) require the divestiture of generation assets or the functional separation of the generation and transmission and distribution businesses of each incumbent electric utility operating in the Commonwealth; (iii) provide all retail customers with guaranteed access to fairly priced electric generation service from a provider of last resort; (iv) provide benefits to all rate classes; (v) include adequate consumer protections, marketing standards, and complaint procedures; and (vi) ensure reliability and compliance with federal and state environmental laws and regulations.The bill provides that incumbent electric utilities will continue to provide distribution services within their exclusive service territories and the Commission will continue to regulate the distribution of retail electric energy to retail customers and, to the extent permitted under federal law, the transmission of electric energy. Additionally, the bill requires that the Commission promulgate regulations requiring all suppliers of electric energy, including providers of last resort, to obtain at least 25 percent of their retail energy sales in the Commonwealth from renewable energy by January 1, 2025; 50 percent of their retail energy sales in the Commonwealth from renewable energy by January 1, 2030; and 100 percent of their retail energy sales in the Commonwealth from renewable energy by January 1, 2050.
Celebrating the life of the Honorable Mary T.Christian.
Plastic bag tax in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Imposes a five-cent per bag tax on plastic bags provided to customers by certain retailers in localities located wholly within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed and directs revenues to be used to support the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Implementation Plan. The bill also allows every retailer that collects the tax to retain one cent of every five cents collected. This bill was incorporated into SB 11.