B 26-0025 Legislature · 26th Council Period (2025-2026)

Certificate of Need Improvement Amendment Act of 2025

This bill modifies Washington D.C.'s certificate of need (CON) requirements for healthcare facilities. It exempts digital-only telehealth platforms, primary care providers, and specialty care providers not affiliated with hospitals or medical schools from the CON process. The bill also defines "group practice," removes a 3-year limit on CON applications, requires the State Health Planning Agency to update spending thresholds every two years (instead of annually), and creates a registration process for facilities offering primary/secondary care, virtual provider networks, and telehealth platforms. These changes aim to reduce regulatory barriers for certain healthcare services while updating oversight procedures.

Issues: ✓ Healthcare ✓ Technology

Sub-Topics: Telehealth Primary Care

Bill status signed all 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2025

Committee Review

Feb 2025

Council Passage

Apr 2025

Signed into Law

Jun 2025

Introduced Jan 6, 2025 Signed Jun 20, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Engrossment → Enrollment · 6 edits

MODERATE

The bill was finalized and enacted into law, with minor formatting corrections to the title and summary. The substantive policy changes remain intact, including raising financial thresholds for hospital construction, changing the adjustment mechanism from annual to every two years, and expanding exemptions for telehealth and specific care types.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on amending the Health Services Planning Program Re-establishment Act of 1996 and related health laws, with no change in the overall applicability.

FISCAL

The capital expenditure threshold for hospital construction projects was increased from $6 million to $15 million.

The capital expenditure threshold for medical equipment purchases was increased from $3.5 million to $5 million.

REQUIREMENT

The requirement for the State Health Planning and Development Agency to update spending thresholds changed from an annual adjustment to an adjustment every two years based on the Producer Price Index.

DEFINITION

A new exemption was added to the definition of 'capital expenditure' to exclude nonpatient care projects and renovations that do not change the number of licensed beds or services.

The definition of 'group practice' was updated to clarify that members must provide substantially the full range of services routinely provided by their license type.

TECHNICAL

The bill title was corrected to remove the word 'Improvement' and the summary was slightly rephrased for consistency.

Floor votes · Council Apr 1, 2025

How they voted

12–0

Passed

Total votes 12

Apr 1, 2025

D Democratic10

10 Yea

100% Yea

I Independent2

2 Yea

100% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Apr 1, 2025

Council · Passed

Council Vote: pass (12-0)

council

Feb 10, 2025

Legislature · Passed

Committee Mark-up of B26-0025 by the Health Committee

legislature

Jan 7, 2025

Committee

Referred to Committee on Health

legislature

Jan 6, 2025

Introduced

B26-0025 Introduced by Councilmember Henderson at Office of the Secretary

legislature

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors