Drug overdose and drug overdose deaths; VDH to develop plan for opioid overdose response.

The list of state secretaries the Department of Health must collaborate with was changed from 'Health and Human Services' to 'Health and Human Resources'.

The bill title was updated to explicitly include the word 'report' to clarify the legislative intent.

The committee proposing the substitute changed from the Senate Committee on Finance and Appropriations to the House Committee on Health and Human Services.

The Department of Health's role changed from being the lead agency for all drug overdose reduction efforts to specifically developing a strategic plan for opioid response.

The strategic plan must now include an evaluation and needs assessment of existing prevention, intervention, and treatment efforts.

The initial report deadline was set for November 1, 2026, with annual reports thereafter, replacing the previous requirement to revise the plan every five years.

Reporting recipients were expanded to include the Governor and specific committee chairs, replacing the requirement to report only to the General Assembly.

The bill's status changed from 'Enrolled' (final) to 'Offered for Consideration' (pending), and the session year was updated to 2026.

Added a requirement for the Department of Health to serve as the lead agency for coordinating drug overdose reduction activities.

Added a mandate for the Department to revise its strategic plan every five years to reflect changing priorities.

Changed the reporting requirement from a single report by November 1, 2026, to annual reports to the General Assembly by November 1.

The requirement for the Department of Health changed from serving as a lead agency to coordinate efforts to the specific duty of developing a strategic plan for opioid overdose response.

A new deadline was added requiring the Department to submit a report on the strategic plan to the Governor and legislative committees by November 1, 2026, and annually thereafter.

The bill's focus shifted from general coordination and monitoring to explicitly requiring an evaluation and needs assessment of existing prevention, intervention, and treatment efforts.