                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

ACUTE PSYCHIATRIC BED REGISTRY (§ 37.2-308.1)

A. The Department shall develop and administer a web-based acute psychiatric bed
registry to collect, aggregate, and display information about available acute
beds in public and private inpatient psychiatric facilities and public and
private residential crisis stabilization units to facilitate the identification
and designation of facilities for the temporary detention and treatment of
individuals who meet the criteria for temporary detention pursuant to &#xA7;
37.2-809.

B. The acute psychiatric bed registry created pursuant to subsection A shall:

   1. Include descriptive information for every public and private inpatient
   psychiatric facility and every public and private residential crisis
   stabilization unit in the Commonwealth, including contact information for the
   facility or unit;

   2. Provide real-time information about the number of beds available at each
   facility or unit and, for each available bed, the type of patient that may be
   admitted, the level of security provided, and any other information that may
   be necessary to allow employees or designees of community services boards and
   employees of inpatient psychiatric facilities or public and private
   residential crisis stabilization units to identify appropriate facilities for
   detention and treatment of individuals who meet the criteria for temporary
   detention; and

   3. Allow employees and designees of community services boards, employees of
   inpatient psychiatric facilities or public and private residential crisis
   stabilization units, and health care providers as defined in &#xA7; 8.01-581.1
   working in an emergency room of a hospital or clinic or other facility
   rendering emergency medical care to perform searches of the registry to
   identify available beds that are appropriate for the detention and treatment
   of individuals who meet the criteria for temporary detention.

C. Data collected through the acute psychiatric bed registry shall be
exclusively utilized for the purposes of appropriate placement of individuals in
need of psychiatric care. No access to individual or aggregated data collected
through the acute psychiatric bed registry shall be granted except as approved
by the Advisory Council pursuant to subsection G.

D. Every state facility, community services board, behavioral health authority,
and private inpatient provider licensed by the Department shall participate in
the acute psychiatric bed registry established pursuant to subsection A and
shall designate such employees as may be necessary to submit information for
inclusion in the acute psychiatric bed registry and serve as a point of contact
for addressing requests for information related to data reported to the acute
psychiatric bed registry.

E. Every state facility, community services board, behavioral health authority,
and private inpatient provider licensed by the Department shall update
information included in the acute psychiatric bed registry whenever there is a
change in bed availability for the facility, board, authority, or provider or,
if no change in bed availability has occurred, at least daily.

F. The Commissioner may enter into a contract with a private entity for the
development and administration of the acute psychiatric bed registry established
pursuant to subsection A. Such contract shall include provisions for the
protection of patient privacy and data security pursuant to state and federal
law and regulations, including the federal Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act (42 U.S.C. &#xA7; 1320d et seq.).

G. The Commissioner shall create the Bed Registry Advisory Council (the Advisory
Council), which shall consist of representatives from the Department, the
Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association, the Virginia College of Emergency
Physicians, and the Virginia Association of Community Services Boards; two
representatives from hospitals or health systems; two emergency physician
representatives, and two representatives from community services boards. The
Advisory Council shall advise the Commissioner and the third-party contractor
regarding the establishment and operation of the acute psychiatric bed registry
established pursuant to subsection A; changes to the acute psychiatric bed
registry; outcome measures, including reports developed by the contractor;
details on methods used to extract, transform, and load data; and efforts to
protect patient privacy and data security. The Commissioner shall also require
the Advisory Council to review and approve requests for access to data in the
acute psychiatric bed registry. The Commissioner shall ensure that (i) all data
approvals are consistent with the purposes of the acute psychiatric bed registry
pursuant to subsection A; (ii) all data approvals comply with applicable state
and federal privacy laws and state and federal laws regarding the exchange of
confidential health care data; and (iii) all releases of data collected through
the acute psychiatric bed registry are approved by the Advisory Council. The
Advisory Council may approve the release of routine or frequent data reports one
time, as long as there are no substantial changes to the request.

H. Information submitted to the acute psychiatric bed registry that identifies
specific individuals receiving services shall be confidential pursuant to state
and federal confidentiality laws and regulations, including the federal Health
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (42 U.S.C. &#xA7; 1320d et seq.)
and shall be exempt from disclosure under the Virginia Freedom of Information
Act (&#xA7; 2.2-3700 et seq.).

HISTORY: 2014, cc. 691, 774; 2015, cc. 34, 116; 2025, cc. 149, 156.