Subcommittee amends, forwards HB 1895 to appropriations to loosen rules for psychiatric emergency departments
Summary
The subcommittee voted to report HB 1895, as amended, to the Appropriations Committee. The bill removes a requirement that psychiatric emergency departments be adjacent to behavioral-health-licensed facilities and inserts a statutory compliance clause.
Delegate Herring presented HB 1895, a bill that “relates to what we determine psychiatric emergency departments.” The measure, as he described it, “will specifically remove the requirement that those psychiatric emergency departments… be adjacent to facilities licensed by behavioral health.”
The subcommittee adopted an amendment that inserts language referencing subdivision B2 of §32.1-127 and then voted to report the amended bill to Appropriations. The chair announced the bill “is referred to appropriations on a vote of 5 to 0.”
Supporters argued the change will give hospital systems more flexibility to open psychiatric emergency departments and reduce time law enforcement spends at those facilities; the sponsor referenced an operating example that “has proven… to remove some of the burden on law enforcement.” No public witnesses opposed the bill in the transcripted hearing.
The amendment adopted modifies statutory cross‑references; committee members moved and seconded the amendment before reporting the bill. The subcommittee recorded the outcome as an amended bill reported to Appropriations.
The bill now proceeds to the Appropriations Committee for further consideration.
