The Virginia General Assembly passed a significant response to a report published by the disAbility Law Center of Virginia. The report analyzed hundreds of deaths in the developmental disability community that were unexpected and possibly preventable. In the majority of cases that we reviewed, emergency response was delayed due to the panicked and chaotic response of staff, who sometimes failed to call 911, called their supervisors first, or even left the house in panic.
Today, the General Assembly passed Delegate Mehta’s HB 1370. The bill requires the Department of Behavioral Health to develop and implement regulations requiring all providers to conduct regular medical drills, now called “simulations” for all staff who provide care, and additionally to have certain staff trained in CPR. Regular medical drills, even if with a name change, will reduce the delays in responses and provide the person in crisis with valuable time and a better chance of survival.
The bill as originally filed called for the regulations to be effective by September 1, 2026, but the final bill moved that date to December 1. While we recognize that those additional three months could represent dozens of crisis situations with poor staff response, the timeline is still sooner than some in the provider networks had asked for. Some providers were content to wait for the tedious, years long process under the administrative procedures act to develop the regulations. Thankfully, the legislature recognized the urgency of the situation and waived the APA.
The mission of the disAbility Law Center of Virginia is to advance independence, choice and self-determination; protect legal, human and civil rights; and eliminate abuse, neglect and discrimination of people with disabilities through zealous and uncompromising legal advocacy and representation.