Healthcare Advocacy in the 2026 Virginia General Assembly

The 2026 Virginia General Assembly has begun, continuing its status as the oldest continuous law-making legislature, dating to July 30, 1619. Senators and delegates began their 60-day “long” session on Wednesday, Jan. 14, in Richmond. 

The 2025 Virginia elections resulted in new leadership in the Commonwealth’s executive branch, with Democrats capturing the three offices.

• Abigail Spanberger, a former Central Intelligence Agency officer and U.S. Representative, takes the oath of office as governor on Saturday, Jan. 17, becoming the first woman to hold Virginia’s top elective office.
• Ghazala Hashmi, a former educator and state senator, takes the oath to become lieutenant governor; she's the first Muslim to hold the office.
• Jay Jones, an attorney and former delegate, takes the oath as Virginia’s first Black attorney general.

Both General Assembly houses are controlled by the Democratic Party.

Carilion’s leaders and subject-matter experts will visit Richmond throughout the session to let legislators know about our priorities and accomplishments, including CRMH's Crystal Spring Tower and the Carilion Taubman Cancer Center. We'll also make sure they know how we’re providing advanced care for our patients and communities throughout Southwest Virginia. Our leaders will pay close attention to the major issues that affect hospitals, our employees, and healthcare in general.

Government affairs work takes place throughout the year, not just when the General Assembly is in session. We inform our state senators and delegates when they're in their home districts, too, and we regularly communicate with the state agencies that oversee the care we provide to our patients in the communities we serve.

The 2026 General Assembly expects to handle around 3,000 pieces of legislation—1,000 more than last year! Our Governmental and External Affairs team closely tracks the bills, looks into whether they'll impact Carilion or other Virginia healthcare providers, and offers advice to the officials who approve and then turn laws into regulations.  

We expect these topics to be among this year’s major legislative issues:

• State budget 
• Behavioral health 
• Health professions
• Healthcare workforce 
• Worker safety 
• Medical malpractice 
• Rural health 
• Maternal health 
• Graduate Medical Education (GME) 

Getting Involved

We succeed in addressing how legislation affects us and our communities by speaking as one – as an organization. Our Governmental and External Affairs team is ready to help our employees who are interested in advocacy for Carilion at the state and federal levels. Serving as a resource on important issues is helpful to our system, and it’s fulfilling to do the work as a citizen.

America’s representative form of government is unique in allowing us to communicate with and inform our elected officials. We’re thankful for everyone who’s interested in legislation that’s considered by the General Assembly and the U.S. Congress.  

If you plan to travel to Richmond to address issues related to Carilion and the work you do for us, please let our Governmental and External Affairs team know about your plans before you travel. This allows us to plan to help you make the most of your time and advocacy and ensure it matches our system positions and messages.

More information

If you want more information, contact Mark Lawrence, Governmental and External Affairs, at mslawrence@carilionclinic.org, or Pete Larkin, Corporate Communications, at pslarkin@carilionclinic.org.