Governor should sign bill to protect health workers
Right now on the governor’s desk sits landmark legislation that is essential for the safety of doctors, nurses, and other hospital workers. House Bill 861, which we passed through the General Assembly earlier this year, is known as the “Protecting Frontline Healthcare Workers Act.” We call on the governor to sign it into law.
This bipartisan bill would finally make it illegal to knowingly bring a firearm, large-blade knife, explosive or other dangerous weapon into a hospital or emergency department. Believe it or not, there is no current state law that directly prohibits this conduct. We believe this is common sense legislation and it mirrors rules that already apply to other sensitive areas such as schools and courtrooms.
This legislation is frighteningly necessary. Health care workers accounted for more than 70% of injuries from workplace violence in 2018, according to the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Furthermore, more than 2,500 dangerous weapons — from guns to tasers to machetes — have been intercepted at just two Sentara hospitals in Norfolk and Virginia Beach since October 2022. That’s why this bill became one of the highest priorities of hospital systems across Virginia, including Riverside, UVA Health, Inova, VCU Health and many others.
Let’s be clear: The growing threat of workplace violence against health care workers paired with an influx of dangerous weapons is, we believe, a recipe for disaster that compels us to act. We cannot wait for a tragedy, we must instead be proactive. For those same reasons, other states across the country, including Texas and Florida, have already adopted similar laws and Virginia should follow suit.
Hospitals, after all, are intended to be sanctuaries for healing. The very last thing that our doctors, nurses and other medical staff should feel at work is threatened or unsafe, but the reality is that many do.
No person trying to save someone’s life should also have to fear for their own. Likewise, all patients — whether they are young children, senior citizens in our community, or victims of crime — deserve to feel completely safe when they walk through the doors of a hospital.
As legislators, we partnered closely with Sentara Hospital and other key stakeholders for several months to craft a bill that is well-designed, enforceable and that includes appropriate exceptions. For example, the legislation exempts members of law enforcement and those who are admitted to a hospital involuntarily. The bill also includes a clear notice provision, requiring health care facilities to post at public entrances that firearms and other dangerous weapons are prohibited.
Despite this careful work and coalition-building, earlier this month the governor made significant amendments to HB861 that would have gutted the bill and failed to keep frontline health care workers safe. His amendments played with fire and disappointed hospital systems across the commonwealth, none of which supported the changes.
Yet in a compelling moment of unity in the House of Delegates, those harmful amendments were uniformly rejected by every single member, Democrat and Republican, in a 98-0 vote. This vote left the governor isolated. He is now, quite literally, the only person standing in the way of safer hospitals and emergency rooms. The good news is that he still has time to do the right thing and sign the bill.
Medical professionals take an oath to do no harm. The least we can do is ensure no harm is done to them. We urge the governor to sign the Protecting Frontline Healthcare Workers Act and keep dangerous weapons out of hospitals.
The very last thing that our doctors, nurses and other medical staff should feel at work is threatened or unsafe, but the reality is that many do.
Del. Phil Hernandez represents Norfolk’s 94th District and he sponsored HB861 in the 2024 legislative session. State Sen. Angelia Williams Graves represents Norfolk’s 21st District and she sponsored SB515. The bills are identical and await the governor’s signature.