SB641 • 2026

Office-based buprenorphine treatment; Board of Medicine to amend regulations.

An Act to direct the Board of Medicine to amend its regulations regarding office-based buprenorphine treatment to require providers to offer counseling or referral to counseling.

Healthcare

Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor: Pillion
Last action: 2026-04-06
Official status: Acts of Assembly Chapter
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific details on enforcement mechanisms or consequences for non-compliance, leaving these aspects unclear.

Office-Based Buprenorphine Treatment Counseling Requirement

This act requires doctors to offer counseling or help finding counseling for patients who need buprenorphine treatment for opioid addiction.

What This Bill Does

Directs the Board of Medicine to change its rules about office-based buprenorphine treatment to require providers to offer counseling or referral to counseling as clinically necessary and mutually agreed-upon.

Who It Names or Affects

Doctors who provide office-based buprenorphine treatment
Patients receiving buprenorphine for opioid use disorder

Terms To Know

Buprenorphine: A medicine used to treat addiction to opioids, like prescription painkillers or heroin.
Office-based treatment: Medical care provided in a doctor's office instead of a hospital or clinic.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify what happens if providers do not follow the new rules.
It is unclear how this will be enforced by the Board of Medicine.

Bill History

2026-04-06 Governor
Approved by Governor-Chapter 208 (effective 7/1/2026)
2026-04-06 Governor
Approved by Governor-Chapter 208 (effective 7/1/2026)
2026-04-06 Governor
Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0208)
2026-03-10 Senate
Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 10, 2026
2026-03-10 Governor
Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026
2026-03-02 Senate
Fiscal Impact statement From DPB (3/2/2026 2:20 pm)
2026-02-26 House
Signed by Speaker
2026-02-26 Senate
Signed by President
2026-02-26 Senate
Enrolled
2026-02-26 Senate
Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB641ER)
2026-02-24 House
Read third time
2026-02-24 House
Passed House Block Vote (98-Y 0-N 0-A)
2026-02-23 House
Read second time
2026-02-19 Health and Human Services
Reported from Health and Human Services (21-Y 0-N)
2026-02-13 House
Placed on Calendar
2026-02-13 Health and Human Services
Referred to Committee on Health and Human Services
2026-02-13 House
Read first time
2026-02-12 Commerce and Labor
Senate committee offered
2026-02-10 Senate
Read third time and passed Senate Block Vote (40-Y 0-N 0-A)
2026-02-09 Senate
Read second time
2026-02-09 Senate
Engrossed by Senate Block Vote (Voice Vote)
2026-02-06 Senate
Rules suspended
2026-02-06 Senate
Passed by for the day
2026-02-06 Senate
Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) (39-Y 0-N 0-A)
2026-02-06 Senate
Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote)
2026-02-05 Education and Health
Reported from Education and Health (14-Y 0-N)
2026-01-30 Health Professions
Assigned Education sub: Health Professions
2026-01-21 Senate
Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB641)
2026-01-14 Senate
Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26104754D
2026-01-14 Education and Health
Referred to Committee on Education and Health

Official Summary Text

Board of Medicine;
office-based buprenorphine treatment; counseling.
Directs the Board of Medicine to amend its regulations regarding office-based buprenorphine treatment to require providers to offer counseling or referral to counseling to each patient as clinically necessary and mutually agreed-upon. The bill specifies that a patient's refusal of counseling does not preclude the patient from receiving office-based buprenorphine treatment for opioid use disorder. This bill is a recommendation of the Joint Commission on Health Care and is identical to HB 712.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

An Act to direct the Board of Medicine to amend its regulations regarding office-based buprenorphine treatment to require providers to offer counseling or referral to counseling.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1.
§ 1. That the Board of Medicine shall amend its regulations regarding office-based buprenorphine treatment to require providers to offer counseling or referral to counseling to each patient as clinically necessary and mutually agreed-upon. Under such regulations, a patient's refusal shall not preclude the patient from receiving office-based buprenorphine treatment for opioid use disorder.