Virginia bill that would've set nursing home staffing standard reduced to another study: 'It's very hurtful'

Virginians hoping to finally see a minimum staffing standard imposed on the state's nearly 300 nursing homes are expressing disappointment after a bill that initially aimed to put such a requirement in place no longer includes any enactment of an actual standard.

“Disappointment. Definitely frustration," nursing home resident advocate Joanna Heiskill said about her reaction to the change. "It's very hurtful because it looks as though our government in Virginia does not care enough."

Del. Rodney Willett (D-Henrico) originally proposed a staffing standard, and it was advancing through the General Assembly with bipartisan support. But by the time the bill passed the House of Delegates, its language had been reduced to direct a study of "the workforce in Virginia nursing facilities."

The study would be completed by the Joint Commission on Health Care which previously produced a study on this same issue in 2021.

“What we're really running into is what we're running into in multiple areas, and that's the budget," Delegate Willett told CBS 6 in an interview. "The bottom line is, there is a huge funding gap, one, created by things the former governor did not fund in his budget, and then two, the incredible impacts coming from Washington."

Virginia is in the minority of states without a staffing minimum and ranks among the bottom 20% of states when it comes to federal staffing ratings.

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