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<law><site_title>Virginia Decoded</site_title><site_url>https://vacode.org</site_url><law_id>59744</law_id><section_number>8.01-581.19:1</section_number><catch_line>Civil immunity for persons providing information to certain committees</catch_line><edition url="https://vacode.org/2025/" slug="2025" current="TRUE" last_updated="">2025</edition><structure><unit label="title" level="1" order_by="1" identifier="8.01">Civil Remedies and Procedure</unit><unit label="chapter" level="2" order_by="1" identifier="21.1">Medical Malpractice</unit><unit label="article" level="3" order_by="1" identifier="2">Miscellaneous Provisions</unit></structure><text>
						<section><p>Any <span class="dictionary">person</span> who provides information to any committee, board, group, commission, or other entity which is authorized to investigate any complaint of physical or mental impairment, that may show that any practitioner of medicine, osteopathy, optometry, chiropractic, podiatry, clinical psychology, physical therapy, veterinary medicine or any physical therapist assistant is unable to practice his profession with reasonable skill and safety, by reason of the use of alcohol, drugs, or other substances, or as a result of any mental or physical condition, shall be immune from civil liability for any act done for, or any utterance or communication made to, such entity in the course of providing such information. However, this section shall not apply if the act, utterance, or communication is done or made in bad faith or with <span class="dictionary">malicious</span> <span class="dictionary">intent</span> or if such disclosure is prohibited by federal <span class="dictionary">law</span> or regulations promulgated thereunder.
		The provisions of this section shall apply only to such entities described in this section as are (i) established pursuant to a federal or state <span class="dictionary">law</span>, (ii) established and duly constituted by one or more public or licensed private <span class="dictionary">hospitals</span>, (iii) a medical or chiropractic society that is operating its <span class="dictionary">health care provider</span> impairment program in cooperation with the Board of Medicine, or another governmental agency, (iv) an optometric society or association that is operating its optometric impairment program in cooperation with the Virginia Board of Optometry, (v) a veterinary medical association that is operating its veterinarian impairment program in cooperation with the Virginia Board of Veterinary Medicine, or (vi) a clinical psychology academy that is operating its clinical psychology impairment program in cooperation with the Board of Psychology.</p></section></text><history>1986, c. 604; 1987, c. 713; 1989, c. 729; 1993, c. 702; 1996, cc. 937, 980.</history><metadata></metadata></law>
