H 293

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No. 116. An act relating to miscellaneous amendments to the Department
of Health’s reporting and programming requirements.
                                    (H.293)
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont:
           * * Community Violence Prevention Program Report * * *
Sec. 1. 18 V.S.A. § 13 is amended to read:
§ 13. COMMUNITY VIOLENCE PREVENTION PROGRAM
                                      ***
   (d)(1) The Commissioner of Health, in consultation and collaboration with
the Chief Prevention Officer, the Department of Public Safety, the Director of
Violence Prevention, the Executive Director of Racial Equity, and the Council
for Equitable Youth Justice, shall report on the Community Violence
Prevention Program:
          (A) on or before September 1, 2023 and December 1, 2023 to the
Joint Legislative Justice Oversight Committee; and
          (B) on or before January 15, 2024, and annually on that date
thereafter, to the Senate and House Committees on Judiciary, the Senate
Committee on Health and Welfare, the House Committee on Human Services,
and the House Committee on Health Care.
      (2) The report required by this subsection shall include:
          (A) a complete description of the Community Violence Prevention
Program grant application and award process;
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          (B) guidelines for the award of grants developed under subdivision
(b)(2) of this section;
          (C) the number of applications submitted and grants awarded, and the
amount of each grant awarded;
          (D) detailed descriptions of the programs and purposes for which all
grants were awarded;
          (E) the impacts and outcomes of funded projects; and
          (F) descriptions of any grants applied for or awarded. [Repealed.]
              * * * Cancer Registry Disclosure Requirements * * *
Sec. 2. 18 V.S.A. § 155 is amended to read:
§ 155. DISCLOSURE
                                       ***
   (b) The Commissioner may furnish confidential information to the National
Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program, other states’ cancer
registries, federal cancer control agencies, or health researchers in order to
collaborate in a national cancer registry or to collaborate in cancer control and
prevention research studies. However, before releasing confidential
information, the Commissioner shall first obtain from such state registries,
agencies, or researchers an agreement in writing to keep written assurances
acceptable to the Commissioner that the identifying information shall be kept
confidential and privileged as required by law. In the case of researchers, the
Commissioner shall also first obtain written evidence of the approval of their
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academic committee for the protection of human subjects established in
accordance with 45 C.F.R. part 46 an institutional review board or privacy
board in accordance with 45 C.F.R. § 164.512(i)(1)(i)(A) and (B).
  * * * Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Registry Disclosure Requirements and
                                 Reporting * * *
Sec. 3. 18 V.S.A. § 174 is amended to read:
§ 174. CONFIDENTIALITY
   (a)(1) All identifying information regarding an individual patient or health
care provider is exempt from public inspection and copying under the Public
Records Act and shall be kept confidential.
      (2) Notwithstanding subdivision (1) of this subsection, the
Commissioner may enter into data sharing and protection agreements with
researchers or state, regional, or national amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
registries for bidirectional data exchange, provided access under such
agreements is consistent with the privacy, security, and disclosure protections
in this chapter. In the case of researchers, the Commissioner shall also first
obtain written evidence of the approval of their academic committee for the
protection of human subjects established in accordance with 45 C.F.R. Part 46
an institutional review board or privacy board in accordance with 45 C.F.R.
§ 164.512(i)(1)(i)(A) and (B). The Commissioner shall disclose the minimum
information necessary to accomplish a specified research purpose.
                                      ***
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Sec. 4. 18 V.S.A. § 175 is amended to read:
§ 175. ANNUAL REPORT
   Annually, on or before January 15 November 1, the Department shall
submit a written report to the Governor, the House Committee on Human
Services, and the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare containing the
statewide prevalence and incidence estimates of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis,
including any trends occurring over time across the State. Reports shall not
contain information that directly or indirectly identifies an individual patient or
health care provider.
                     * * * Health Equity Data Reporting * * *
Sec. 5. 18 V.S.A. § 252 is amended to read:
§ 252. HEALTH EQUITY ADVISORY COMMISSION
                                       ***
   (e) Report. Annually, on On or before January 15 of odd-numbered years,
the Advisory Commission shall submit a written report to the Senate
Committee on Health and Welfare and to the House Committees on Health
Care and on Human Services with its findings and any recommendations for
legislative action. The Advisory Commission is encouraged to base
recommendations on the data collected and analysis completed pursuant to
section 253 of this title.
                                       ***
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Sec. 6. 18 V.S.A. § 253 is amended to read:
§ 253. DATA RESPONSIVE TO HEALTH EQUITY INQUIRIES
                                       ***
   (b)(1) The Department of Health shall systematically analyze such health
equity data using the smallest appropriate units of analysis feasible to detect
racial and ethnic disparities, as well as disparities along the lines of primary
language, sex, disability status, sexual orientation, gender identity, and
socioeconomic status, and report the results of such analysis on the
Department’s website periodically, but not less than biannually. The
Department’s analysis shall be used to measure over time the impact of actions
taken to reduce health disparities in Vermont. The data informing the
Department’s analysis shall be made available to the public in accordance with
State and federal law.
      (2) Annually Every three years beginning in 2029, on or before January
15, the Department shall submit a report containing the results of the analysis
conducted pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection to the Senate
Committee on Health and Welfare and to the House Committees on Health
Care and on Human Services.
    * * * Emergency Service Provider Wellness Commission Report * * *
Sec. 7. 18 V.S.A. § 7257b(h) is amended to read:
   (h) Notwithstanding 2 V.S.A. § 20(d), the Commission shall report its
conclusions and recommendations to the Governor and General Assembly as
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the Commission deems necessary but not less frequently than once per
calendar year. The report shall disclose individually identifiable health
information only to the extent necessary to convey the Commission’s
conclusions and recommendations, and any such disclosures shall be limited to
information already known to the public. The report shall be available to the
public through the Department of Health. [Repealed.]
      * * * Service Members and Veterans; Food Service Licensing * * *
Sec. 8. 2018 Acts and Resolves No. 119, Sec. 8 is amended to read:
   Sec. 8. REPORTING; UTILIZATION BY SERVICE MEMBERS AND
           VETERANS
                                      ***
   (d) The Commissioner of Health shall, on or before February 1 of each
year, report to the House Committees on Commerce and Economic
Development, on General, Housing, and Military Affairs, and on Government
Operations and the Senate Committees on Economic Development, Housing
and General Affairs and on Government Operations regarding the number of
service members and veterans who, during the previous calendar year, were
deemed to have knowledge of the prevention of food-borne disease, be able to
apply the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point principles, and have met the
criteria for “demonstration of knowledge” requirements set forth by the
Department of Health in rule for the purposes of obtaining a food
establishment license as provided pursuant to 18 V.S.A. § 4303(b) and the total
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number of food establishment licenses issued to those service members and
veterans. [Repealed.]
                  * * * Recovery Service Organizations * * *
Sec. 9. REPORT; RECOVERY SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS
   On or before February 15, 2027, the Department of Health, in consultation
with other Agency of Human Services’ departments and recovery service
organizations, shall submit a written report to the House Committees on
Appropriations, on Health Care, and on Human Services and to the Senate
Committees on Appropriations and on Health and Welfare containing
information on the total actual income and expenditures for recovery service
organizations in fiscal years 2024–2026. Specifically, the report shall address:
      (1) public funding sources, including all appropriated State funds,
federal funds, and municipal funds;
      (2) recipients of recovery service organization funding;
      (3) an analysis of recovery service organization grant performance
measures and outcomes; and
      (4) any recommendations for enhancing the financial stability of
recovery service organizations.
                              * * * Repeals * * *
Sec. 10. REPEALS
   (a) 18 V.S.A. § 5208 (Department of Health; report on statistics) is
repealed.
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  (b) 18 V.S.A. § 1756 (lead screening; annual report) is repealed.
                          * * * Effective Date * * *
Sec. 11. EFFECTIVE DATE
  This act shall take effect on July 1, 2026.
Date Governor signed bill: June 8, 2026
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