2026 SESSION

INTRODUCED

26104724D

HOUSE BILL NO. 674

Offered January 14, 2026

Prefiled January 13, 2026

A BILL to amend and reenact § 32.1-23.6 of the Code of Virginia, relating to Department of Health; collection and annual publication of food insecurity information.

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Patrons—Maldonado, Franklin, M.A., McAuliff, Anderson, Bennett-Parker, Cousins, Guzman, Henson, Hernandez, Lopez, Martinez, McClure, Nivar, Price, Reaser, Sewell, Shin and Tran

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Referred to Committee on Health and Human Services

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Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That § 32.1-23.6 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:

§ 32.1-23.6. Information and data related to social determinants of health; food security.

A. As used in this section:

"Demographic data" means data and information regarding the race, ethnicity, age, and gender of residents of the Commonwealth.

"Social determinants of health" means conditions that affect health risks and health outcomes, including health care access and quality, education access and quality, social and community context, economic stability, and neighborhood and built environment.

B. The Department shall (i) collect and analyze information regarding demographics and the social determinants of health and their impacts on health and health risks of residents of the Commonwealth and (ii) make such information and analyses available to the public on its website. Nothing in this section shall allow for the release of personal health information or any other confidential information.

C. The Department shall, as part of its participation in the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, collect information pursuant to the U.S. Household Food Security Survey Module: Six-Item Short Form developed by the Economic Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and shall organize such information based on the locality of the respondent. The Department shall annually, by November 1, publish such information it collects organized by locality pursuant to this subsection publicly on its website.