HB 1929: Pregnancy mobile application; promoting awareness of gov't. maternal & infant health programs, etc. - Virginia

Governor Substitute → Chaptered · 6 edits

MODERATE

The bill was enacted into law, changing from a Governor's substitute proposal to a final chaptered version. The final version adds specific clinical standards from major health organizations, expands data reporting requirements to include Medicaid eligibility and Virginia-specific content engagement, and adds implementation timelines and funding authorization provisions.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to include 'individuals' instead of just 'mothers' in the description of beneficiaries, and added specific clinical standards from five major health organizations that the application must meet.

ELIGIBILITY

Changed beneficiary description from 'mothers' to 'individuals' to be more inclusive of all eligible Medicaid recipients.

REQUIREMENT

Added specific clinical standards from CDC, NIH, ACOG, AMA, and AAP that the application must meet.

Expanded data reporting requirements to include Medicaid eligibility status, Virginia-specific content engagement, and enrollment inquiries.

Changed RFP issuance trigger from 'when appropriations are provided' to 'within 180 days of effective date' regardless of funding status.

TIMELINE

Added requirement that RFP be issued within 180 days of effective date and implementation must occur no later than October 1, 2026.

FISCAL

Added authorization for the Department to contract for the application and requirement to submit future funding requests as part of the Budget Bill process.

Finance and Appropriations Substitute → Governor Substitute · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was revised from a Senate substitute to a Governor substitute, shifting the focus from all prenatal, pregnant, and postpartum individuals to specifically mothers enrolled in Medicaid. The Governor's version adds the option for the Department to partner with a managed care organization in addition to a mobile application. Several data reporting requirements were simplified, and the timeline for issuing the request for proposals was changed to occur when appropriations are provided rather than within 180 days.

Scope change

The target audience was narrowed from all eligible individuals to specifically mothers enrolled in Medicaid, and the implementation partner was expanded to include managed care organizations alongside mobile applications.

SCOPE

The target audience was changed from 'prenatal, pregnant, and postpartum individuals' to 'prenatal, pregnant, and postpartum mothers' to specify the program is for mothers only.

Added the option for the Department to partner with a managed care organization in addition to a mobile pregnancy application.

REQUIREMENT

Simplified data reporting requirements by removing specific metrics for Medicaid eligibility, Virginia-specific content engagement, and enrollment inquiries, keeping only monthly/daily users, usage time, and other requested data.

Removed the requirement that the application must meet specific clinical standards from defined organizations (CDC, NIH, ACOG, AMA, AAP), replacing it with a general requirement to meet acceptable clinical standards.

TIMELINE

Changed the timeline for issuing the request for proposals from 'within 180 days of the effective date' to 'when appropriations are provided through a general appropriations act'.

Education and Health Substitute → Finance and Appropriations Substitute · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to shift from the Education and Health Committee to the Finance and Appropriations Committee, changing its focus from a standalone program to a budget-appropriated initiative. The version now includes a phased implementation approach with specific deadlines and requires future funding requests to be submitted as part of the state budget process.

Scope change

The bill's scope changed from an immediate program launch to a two-phase implementation requiring future budget approval, shifting oversight from Education and Health to Finance and Appropriations committees.

COMMITTEE

Committee changed from Education and Health to Finance and Appropriations, indicating a shift from programmatic to budgetary oversight.

ELIGIBILITY

Eligibility criteria changed from 'eligible for Medicaid' to 'enrolled in Medicaid', narrowing the target population to those already receiving benefits.

TIMELINE

Added implementation deadline of October 1, 2026, creating a phased rollout rather than immediate launch.

FISCAL

Removed the fixed $580,000 annual payment and replaced with authorization to contract within budget limits, requiring future funding requests through the state budget process.

REQUIREMENT

Added requirement to submit future funding requests as part of the Budget Bill submission process under Virginia Code § 2.2-1509.

Health and Human Services Substitute → Education and Health Substitute · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was transferred from the Health and Human Services Committee to the Education and Health Committee, changing the responsible department from the Department of Health to the Department of Medical Assistance Services. The funding structure was simplified by removing the per-member-per-month fee calculation and only retaining the $580,000 annual cap. Several procedural and formatting changes were made to align with Senate substitute markup conventions.

Scope change

The bill's scope shifted from the Department of Health to the Department of Medical Assistance Services, which is the agency responsible for administering Medicaid in Virginia.

SCOPE

The responsible agency changed from the Department of Health to the Department of Medical Assistance Services, reflecting the bill's focus on Medicaid-eligible populations.

FISCAL

The per-member-per-month fee structure ($10 per user) was removed, leaving only the $580,000 annual payment cap without a clear calculation method.

REQUIREMENT

The language for the request for proposal timeline was simplified from 'within 180 days of the effective date' to a more general statement without specific timing language in some sections.

TECHNICAL

Formatting and markup conventions were updated to reflect Senate committee processing, including page numbering and draft status indicators.

Enrolled → Health and Human Services Substitute · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended to change the responsible department from Medical Assistance Services to Health, added a specific funding cap of $580,000 annually based on a $10 per user per month fee, and updated the language to authorize contracting with a 'mobile developer' rather than just partnering with an application.

Scope change

The bill's scope was modified by transferring responsibility from the Department of Medical Assistance Services to the Department of Health, and the funding mechanism was explicitly defined with a per-user fee and annual cap.

SCOPE

Responsibility for the mobile pregnancy application shifted from the Department of Medical Assistance Services to the Department of Health.

FISCAL

Added a specific funding provision authorizing a $10 per member per month fee with an annual cap of $580,000 for the application vendor.

REQUIREMENT

Changed the contracting language from partnering with an 'application' to contracting with a 'mobile developer' to create and operate the application.

TIMELINE

Removed the specific implementation deadline of October 1, 2026 that was present in the original enrolled version.

Introduced → Enrolled · 5 edits · May 2, 2025

MODERATE

The bill evolved from a House Bill creating a new Department of Health section to an Enrolled Act that expanded the Department's role from the Department of Health to the Department of Medical Assistance Services. The final version added a new Section 3 requiring implementation by October 1, 2026, and Section 4 requiring a budget request for future costs, while removing the original Section 1 that added a new code section number.

Scope change

The bill's scope shifted from adding a new code section to amending existing sections, and the responsible agency changed from the Department of Health to the Department of Medical Assistance Services.

AGENCY

The responsible agency changed from the Department of Health to the Department of Medical Assistance Services, which manages Medicaid in Virginia.

TIMELINE

A new Section 3 was added requiring the application contract to be implemented no later than October 1, 2026.

FISCAL

A new Section 4 was added requiring the Department to submit a budget request for future application costs as part of the state budget process.

ELIGIBILITY

The eligibility language was slightly modified from 'eligible for Medicaid' to 'enrolled in Medicaid' in the description of the target population.

TECHNICAL

The original Section 1 that added a new code section numbered 32.1-23.02 was removed, as the bill structure changed to amend existing sections instead.

Pregnancy mobile application; promoting awareness of gov't. maternal & infant health programs, etc.

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