TITLE 18. PROFESSIONAL AND OCCUPATIONAL LICENSING
BOARD OF MEDICINE
Initial Agency Notice
Title of Regulation: 18VAC85-20. Regulations Governing the Practice of Medicine, Osteopathic Medicine, Podiatry, and Chiropractic.
Statutory Authority: § 54.1-2400 of the Code of Virginia.
Name of Petitioner: Joseph Foley, DC.
Nature of Petitioner's Request: The petitioner requests that the Board of Medicine amend 18VAC85-20-235 to (i) remove the requirement that doctors of chiropractic obtain clinical continuing education hours and (ii) require 24 of the 30 annual hours be in person, face-to-face.
Agency Plan for Disposition of Request: The petition will be published in the Virginia Register of Regulations on August 25, 2025. The petition will also be published on the Virginia Regulatory Town Hall at www.townhall.virginia.gov to receive public comment, which opens August 25, 2025, and closes September 24, 2025. The board will consider the petition and all comments in support or opposition at the next meeting after the close of public comment. Currently that meeting is scheduled for October 30, 2025. The petitioner will be notified of the board's decision after that meeting.
Public Comment Deadline: September 24, 2025.
Agency Contact: Erin Barrett, Director of Legislative and Regulatory Affairs, Department of Health Professions, Perimeter Center, 9960 Mayland Drive, Suite 300, Henrico, VA, 23233, telephone (804)750-3912, or email erin.barrett@dhp.virginia.gov.
VA.R. Doc. No. PFR26-03; Filed July 31, 2025, 8:34 a.m.
Agency Decision
Title of Regulation: 18VAC85-21. Regulations Governing Prescribing of Opioids and Buprenorphine.
Statutory Authority: §§ 54.1-2400 and 54.1-2928.2 of the Code of Virginia.
Name of Petitioner: Virginia Society of Addiction Medicine.
Nature of Petitioner's Request: The petitioner requests that the Board of Medicine amend 18VAC85-21-150 and 18VAC85-21-160 to (i) remove provision of counseling services or provision of a referral for counseling services to the patient, (ii) remove documentation requirements of the rationale for prescriptions of buprenorphine that exceed 24 milligrams per day, and (iii) remove the restriction on prescribing buprenorphine to patients younger than 16 years of age.
Agency Decision: Request denied.
Statement of Reason for Decision:
At its August 1, 2025, meeting, the Board of Medicine voted to take no action on the petition. The board felt that the requirement to document the prescription of buprenorphine is not an onerous requirement, and no justification exists for changing it. Additionally, the use of buprenorphine is not currently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and the board saw a lack of justification for changing it.
Agency Contact: Erin Barrett, Director of Legislative and Regulatory Affairs, Department of Health Professions, Perimeter Center, 9960 Mayland Drive, Suite 300, Henrico, VA, 23233, telephone (804)750-3912, or email erin.barrett@dhp.virginia.gov.
VA.R. Doc. No. PFR26-04; Filed May 5, 2025, 2:59 p.m.
BOARD OF COUNSELING
Agency Decision
Title of Regulation: 18VAC115-60. Regulations Governing the Practice of Licensed Substance Abuse Treatment Practitioners.
Statutory Authority: §§ 54.1-2400 and 54.1-3505 of the Code of Virginia.
Name of Petitioner: Sharon Toliver-Hardy.
Nature of Petitioner's Request: The petitioner requests that the Board of Counseling amend 18VAC115-60-90 to permit licensed clinical social workers licensed for 10 years or more who also hold a certification as a substance abuse counselor and have practiced within the last five years to have the examination requirement to become a licensed substance abuse treatment provider waived, similar to an exemption for licensed professional counselors applying to become a licensed substance abuse treatment practitioner (LSATP).
Agency Decision: Request denied.
Statement of Reason for Decision: At its July 25, 2025, meeting, the board voted to take no action on the petition. While the board is supportive of the petition, the board would like to send this issue to the regulatory committee to consider other license types that should be exempted from the required examination to become a LSATP. This issue will also be considered as part of the upcoming periodic review of regulations.
Agency Contact: Jaime Hoyle, Executive Director, Board of Counseling, 9960 Mayland Drive, Suite 300, Henrico, VA, 23233, telephone (804) 367-4406, or email jaime.hoyle@dhp.virginia.gov.
VA.R. Doc. No. PFR26-02; Filed March 7, 2025, 2:00 p.m.
BOARD OF SOCIAL WORK
Initial Agency Notice
Title of Regulation: 18VAC140-20. Regulations Governing the Practice of Social Work.
Statutory Authority: § 54.1-2400 of the Code of Virginia.
Name of Petitioner: Sara Pearce.
Nature of Petitioner's Request: The petitioner requests that the Board of Social Work amend 18VAC140-20-150 to include a new subsection that would require (i) up to three transitional sessions, delivered in person or via synchronous telehealth, to be performed that shall not be less than 45 minutes; (ii) a written referral list of at least three outpatient providers that the licensee has confirmed are accepting new clients as a written crisis-response plan that includes resources 24 hours per day, seven days a week and instructions for emergency care; and (iii) at the client's request, the licensee shall make one good-faith contact with the client's new therapist to provide a summary of care and current risk factors consistent with confidentiality requirements.
Agency Plan for Disposition of Request: The petition for rulemaking will be published in the Virginia Register of Regulations on August 25, 2025. The petition will also be published on the Virginia Regulatory Town Hall at www.townhall.virginia.gov to receive public comment, which opens August 25, 2025, and closes September 15, 2025. The board will consider the petition and all comments in support or opposition at the next meeting after the close of public comment. Currently that meeting is scheduled for September 26, 2025. The petitioner will be notified of the board's decision after that meeting.
Public Comment Deadline: September 15, 2025.
Agency Contact: Jaime Hoyle, Executive Director, Board of Social Work, 9960 Mayland Drive, Suite 300, Henrico, VA, 23233, telephone (804) 367-4441, or email jaime.hoyle@dhp.virginia.gov.
VA.R. Doc. No. PFR26-01; Filed July 23, 2025, 12:46 p.m.