Responsibilities

The State Board of Health:

• May formulate a program of environmental health services, laboratory services and preventive, curative and restorative medical care services, including home and clinic health services to be provided by the Department of Health on a regional, district or local basis (§32.1-11A).
• Defines the income limitations within which a person shall be deemed to be medically indigent; prescribes the charges to be paid for the medical care services of the Department by others (§32.1-11B).
• Periodically reviews the program and charges adopted (§32.1-11C).
• Establishes AIDS services and education grants program; awards grants under the program; appoints an advisory committee of experts in AIDS services and education to assist in the process of awarding the grants, with funds appropriated for this purpose (§32.1-11.1).
• Provides grants for no more than five regional AIDS resource and consultation centers and two pilot treatment centers, as funds are appropriated for this purpose (§32.1-11.2).
• Formulates a program of patient and community health education services to be provided by the Department on a regional, district, or local basis, to include services addressing health promotion and disease prevention, and encouraging the coordination of local and private sector health education services (§32.1-11.3).
• Establishes the worksite health promotion grants program, as funds are appropriated for this purpose (§32.1-11.4).
• Makes, adopts, promulgates and enforces regulations, and provides for reasonable variances and exemptions therefrom, to carry out its responsibilities or those of the Commissioner or the Department (§32.1-12).
• Promulgates regulations for human research to be conducted or authorized by the Department or any facilities or other entities operated, funded, or licensed by the Department; requires an annual report to the Governor, the General Assembly, and the Commissioner on the human research projects reviewed and approved, and any significant deviations from those approved (§32.1-12.1).
• Makes emergency orders and regulations for the purpose of suppressing nuisances dangerous to the public health and communicable, contagious and infectious diseases and other dangers to the public life and health (§32.1-13).
• Directs the Department to inform the Board regarding health care policy and financing concerns through studies to be conducted with the advice of and in consultation with the Virginia Health Planning Board; makes recommendations concerning health care policy to the Governor, the General Assembly, and the Secretary of Health and Human Resources (§32.1-13.1).
• Submits an annual report to the Governor and General Assembly (§32.1-14).
• Suggests legislative action deemed necessary for the better protection of life and public health (§32.1-15).
• Additional specific program responsibilities are contained throughout the balance of §32.1 and in other sections of the Code of Virginia.