by James C. Sherlock

People, including our elected representatives in the General Assembly of Virginia, might not know that the Commonwealth is subject to a permanent federal court injunction requiring compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The “Commonwealth of Virginia” is enjoined, not just the executive branch.  

The author herein informs the General Assembly, the Governor, and Virginia’s Attorney General, who is responsible for defending the action in federal court, that a bill passed this year and another one left in the House Appropriations Committee combine to carry profound human and legal implications.

2026 HB 1380 

The House of Delegates was presented this session with House Bill 1380 (HB 1380) to authorize the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Disability Services (DBHDS) to:

1. adopt regulations requiring providers of services for individuals with developmental disabilities to conduct regular emergency medical drills; and
2. impose sanctions on providers for human rights violations that threaten the health, safety, or life of individuals receiving services.

The Fiscal Impact Statement for that bill reported no fiscal impact for part 1 and an annual impact of $663,048 to fund part 2. But the FIS revealed far more than that.

The proposed legislation would require the commissioner to penalize providers who fail to comply if such a violation poses a threat to the life of individuals receiving services or where there are recurring violations that pose a threat to health or safety. … Based on current data, DBHDS estimates that there will be 1,560 sanctions issued in the first year.

So DBHDS “estimates” that violations that pose a threat to the health and safety of the developmentally disabled exceed 1,500 annually. Seriously. They wrote that. This was a 2026 bill. Did the number of health and safety violations exceed 1,500 per year before DBHDS noticed?  

The Department says it will need three additional FTEs to handle the enforcement workload.  

HB 1380 was “left” in the Appropriations Committee. House Appropriations decided the Commonwealth did not wish to spend $700k a year to fund DBHDS to deal with threats to the health and safety of people with developmental disabilities. For context, Medicaid programs for developmental disability (DD) waiver services will cost $839.9 million in SFY 2027.

2026 HB 1370

HB 1370 was identical to 1380 in requiring emergency medical drills, but lacked the provision authorizing (and funding) the DBHDS Office of Licensing to impose sanctions.  

The decision to eliminate the funding for the enforcement of the human rights of the DD community is unimaginably cruel. It also appears to violate the court injunction.

HB 1370 passed unanimously in both Houses.

Injunction Item 45

DD Service Providers’ Compliance with the Administrative Code. The Commonwealth will work to achieve a goal that at least 86% of DBHDS-licensed providers of (Developmental Disabilities) DD waivers comply with 12 VAC 35-105-620 in effect on the date of this Order or as may be amended. To achieve that goal, the Commonwealth will take the following actions:

b. Within six months from the date of this Order, for providers who are not compliant with 12 VAC 35-105-620.C.4. and D.3.(regarding corrective action plans) for two consecutive licensing inspections, DBHDS shall take appropriate further action to enforce adherence to the Commonwealth’s regulations, which may include, but not be limited to, issuing citations, issuing systemic citations, issuing a health and safety corrective action plan, reducing a provider’s license to provisional status, or revoking the provider’s license as determined appropriate by DBHDS.

DBHDS says it cannot afford to carry out its enforcement duties with the current staff. The General Assembly decided not to fund a staff increase to accomplish the task.

Bottom line

One thing needs to be aired.

Lucas Lodge in Portsmouth offers Medicaid-funded developmental disability (DD) waiver services, including two residential programs and day support for adults. It is licensed, regulated, and inspected by DBHDS and has been billing Medicaid since 2006. Below is the National Provider Identifier (NPI) for Medicaid and Medicare billing.  

The General Assembly has done two things in the 2026 session of interest to Lucas Lodge:  

• It has appropriated funds for Virginia Medicaid to significantly increase spending in developmental disability (DD) waiver services, with projected expenditures rising from $657.5 million in SFY 2026 to $839.9 million in SFY 2027.  A 28% increase.
• It has materially constrained DBHDS’s powers to regulate those programs.  

Lisa Lucas-Burke, former Vice-Mayor of Portsmouth, is now the Executive Director. Lucas Lodge, DBHDS license 341, has three service licenses:  

The CEO of Lucas Lodge is L. Louise Lucas, President Pro Tempore of the Virginia Senate and Chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations.

Veto HB 1370, Governor Spanberger. Give the General Assembly a second chance and keep the Attorney General from having to defend it. Send it back with a veto message recommending HB 1380 as the substitute.