New State Legislation for Virginia Defense Force

A new piece of legislation have been introduced in Virginia that involve the Virginia Defense Force. House Bill 642 & Senate Bill 719 both allow the Department of Military Affairs to cover the employer portion of health care premiums for troops of the Virginia National Guard & Virginia Defense Force while on Active Duty.

Both bills are very similar and are in the introductory state

• House Bill 642
  • Summary:Department of Military Affairs; health care premium payments for certain service members. Provides that if the Governor has declared a state of emergency that activated the Virginia National Guard or the Virginia Defense Force, then the Department of Military Affairs (the Department) is authorized to pay, for any service member of the Virginia National Guard or the Virginia Defense Force that was called to state active duty under a declaration of a state of emergency for at least 14 consecutive days, the portion of the premium for such service member’s health care coverage previously paid by the service member’s employer, provided that the service member provides satisfactory evidence to the Department demonstrating that (i) immediately prior to being called to state active duty, the service member was employed and received health care coverage through his employer, (ii) the employer paid a premium to maintain the service member’s health care coverage, and (iii) as a result of the service member’s state active duty status, the employer is no longer paying such premium. The bill authorizes the Department to use the sum sufficient identified in the relevant state of emergency declaration for any such payment. The bill requires the Department to establish policies, procedures, and protocols to implement and record any payment authorized by this section and to report annually by November 1 to the Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs all such payments made.
  • Status: 2022-01-11 – Referred to Committee on Public Safety
• Senate Bill 719
  • Summary: Department of Military Affairs; health care insurance premiums for members of Virginia National Guard or Virginia Defense Force. Provides that the Department of Military Affairs shall have the power to pay the employer portion of health care insurance premiums for any member of the Virginia National Guard or Virginia Defense Force when certain circumstances are met. The bill requires the Department to establish policies, procedures, and protocols to implement and record such payments and to report annually to the Secretary of Veterans and Defense Affairs all such payments made.
  • Status: 2022-01-21 – Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology