Virginia Healthcare Update: New Laws Taking Effect July 1, 2026

January ushered in a new Governor and General Assembly, along with hundreds of proposed legislative changes affecting Virginians. Among them were numerous bills affecting healthcare across the Commonwealth. Proposals to significantly increase the medical malpractice cap did not become law, but several enacted measures will impact providers and healthcare facilities beginning July 1, 2026. Below is an overview of several key developments, along with practical takeaways.

Licensing, Workforce, and Professional Regulation

HB 627 – Covenants Not to Compete for Health Care Professionals (Va. Code § 40.1-28.7:8)

HB 627 expands Virginia’s restrictions on non-compete agreements by prohibiting employers from entering into, enforcing, or threatening to enforce non-compete agreements against a broad range of healthcare professionals, including individuals licensed by the Boards of Medicine, Nursing, Counseling, Optometry, Psychology, and Social Work. Violations may result in civil penalties of up to $10,000 per violation.

Why this matters: Healthcare employers should review provider employment agreements to ensure compliance.

HB 232 – Collaborative Agreements; Removes Registered Nurses from List of Practitioners (Va. Code § 54.1-3300.1)

HB 232 removes registered nurses from the list of practitioners whose diagnoses may form the basis of drug therapy conducted pursuant to collaborative agreements between practitioners and pharmacists.

Why this matters: Healthcare organizations utilizing pharmacist collaborative practice agreements should review existing agreements to ensure compliance with the revised statutory requirements.

Medical Malpractice and Liability

SB 536 – Medical Malpractice Information Disclosures; Report (Va. Code § 8.01-581.15:1)

SB 536 underwent several significant revisions during the legislative session. What began as a proposal involving prejudgment interest and later evolved into a proposal to increase the medical malpractice damages cap to $6 million by July 2027 was ultimately transformed into a medical malpractice reporting bill.

As passed by the General Assembly, SB 536 requires insurers, hospitals, and certain other entities to report information regarding medical malpractice claims, payments, defense costs, verdicts, and settlements to the Chairs of the House and Senate Courts of Justice Committees. Initial reporting for the 2025 calendar year is due by September 1, 2026. Some of the reported information will be made available to the public in a limited format.

Why this matters: Although the bill does not increase liability exposure or alter the medical malpractice cap, healthcare facilities and insurers need to prepare for additional reporting obligations. These reports may prompt more discussions to increase the medical malpractice cap again in the next legislative session.

HB 528 – Wrongful Death Settlements; Court Approval Without Hearing (Va. Code § 8.01-55)

HB 528 streamlines the process for obtaining court approval of wrongful death settlements. This legislation allows courts to approve a wrongful death settlement without a hearing when all interested parties agree to and endorse the proposed compromise order. Beneficiary endorsements must be notarized unless executed by a guardian ad litem.

Why this matters: All parties will benefit from a more efficient settlement approval process in wrongful death cases. This will reduce delays in settlements, litigation costs, and scheduling challenges associated with obtaining court approval.

HB 1007 – Virginia Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Program and Fund (Va. Code § 38.2-5002)

HB 1007 makes changes to the current Virginia Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Program. Most notably, this legislation increases the amount recoverable by qualifying families from $100,000 to $500,000. This legislation also clarifies that civil actions arising out of qualifying birth-related neurological injuries involving participating physicians and hospitals shall be referred to the Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission.

Hospital and Patient Care Operations

HB 1489 – Reports of Threats of Acts of Violence Against Health Care Providers (Va. Code § 2.2-3705.5)

HB 1489 expands workplace violence reporting requirements for hospitals with emergency departments. This legislation requires additional incident-specific reporting. The Virginia Department of Health will publish annual statewide reports concerning such incidents. Regulations must be implemented by January 1, 2027.

Why this matters: Workplace violence is a considerable concern throughout the healthcare industry. Hospitals should review incident reporting and data collection practices to ensure compliance with the expanded requirements.

HB 309 – Temporary Detention in Hospitals (Va. Code § 37.2-1104)

HB 309 addresses situations where healthcare providers are seeking a temporary detention order (TDO) for observation or treatment. This legislation allows a patient to remain in the custody of the facility for a limited period while authorization is being sought and provides liability protections for healthcare professionals, hospital staff, and healthcare facilities involved in the detention process under specified circumstances.

Why this matters: Emergency departments, psychiatric providers, and hospital risk management teams should review policies governing patient supervision and TDOs. This legislation provides clarification regarding the authority to maintain custody of certain patients while legal authorization is pending and offers additional liability protections when providers act in accordance with this statute.

HB 456 – Standards for Levels of Neonatal Care (Va. Code § 32.1-127)

HB 456 directs the State Board of Health to establish standards for designation of neonatal levels of care that are consistent with nationally recognized standards published by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). Regulations must be promulgated by July 1, 2027, and enforcement will not begin until July 1, 2029.

Why this matters: Hospitals providing neonatal services should begin evaluating their current capabilities, transfer protocols, staffing, and accreditation requirements. While implementation is a few years away, facilities need time to assess whether changes will be necessary to meet future standards.

One to Watch

SB 99 – Medical Malpractice; Limitation on Recovery; Certain Actions

Although not enacted this session, SB 99 remains one of the most significant healthcare liability proposals under consideration. This bill would eliminate Virginia’s medical malpractice damages cap for claims involving patients age 10 or younger when the alleged malpractice occurred on or after July 1, 2026.

This bill was continued to the 2027 session for further consideration.

Why this matters: While the bill did not pass this year, it demonstrates continued legislative interest in creating exceptions to Virginia’s medical malpractice cap. Its passage would substantially increase exposure in pediatric malpractice cases and would most certainly change the landscape of medical malpractice litigation in Virginia.

This summary is intended as a high-level overview of selected legislation and is not a comprehensive review of all health-related laws enacted during the 2026 Session of the Virginia General Assembly.

If you have questions about how these new laws may affect your organization, please contact the authors or any member of our Healthcare Team at Woods Rogers.