A. Every member of, or health care professional consultant to, any committee, board, group, commission or other entity shall be immune from civil liability for any act, decision, omission, or utterance done or made in performance of his duties while serving as a member of or consultant to such committee, board, group, commission or other entity that functions primarily to review, evaluate, or make recommendations on (i) the duration of patient stays in health care facilities; (ii) the professional services furnished with respect to the medical, dental, psychological, podiatric, chiropractic, veterinary, or optometric necessity for such services; (iii) the purpose of promoting the most efficient use or monitoring the quality of care of available health care facilities and services, or of emergency medical services agencies and services; (iv) the adequacy or quality of professional services; (v) the competency and qualifications for professional staff privileges; (vi) the reasonableness or appropriateness of charges made by or on behalf of health care facilities; (vii) patient safety, including entering into contracts with patient safety organizations, provided that such committee, board, group, commission, or other entity has been established pursuant to federal or state law or regulation, the requirements of a national accrediting organization granted authority by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to assure compliance with Medicare conditions of participation pursuant to § 1865 of Title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. § 1395bb), or guidelines approved or adopted by a statewide or local association representing health care providers licensed in the Commonwealth pursuant to clause (iii)(f) of subsection B of § 8.01-581.17, or established and duly constituted by one or more public or licensed private hospitals, health systems, community services boards, or behavioral health authorities, or with a governmental agency, and provided further that such act, decision, omission, or utterance is not done or made in bad faith or with malicious intent.
§ 8.01-581.16.Civil immunity for members of or consultants to certain boards or committees.
Chapter 21.1. Medical Malpractice · Article 2. Miscellaneous Provisions · Last amended 2025 · Last verified July 16, 2026
In one sentenceMembers and health care professional consultants who serve on hospital or professional peer-review, utilization-review, credentialing, or wellness-program committees are immune from civil liability for their committee work, subject to an institutional-pedigree requirement for peer-review committees and a bad-faith/malicious-intent carve-out that applies only to that peer-review immunity, not the separate wellness-program immunity.
Full Text of § 8.01-581.16
B. Every member of, or health care professional consultant to, any committee, board, group, commission, or other entity that functions primarily to (i) review, evaluate, or make recommendations on a professional program to address issues related to career fatigue and wellness or (ii) arrange for or provide outpatient health care related to career fatigue and wellness for (a) health care professionals licensed, registered, or certified by a board of the Department of Health Professions as enumerated by § 54.1-2503 or (b) students enrolled in a graduate school or professional program, the completion of which is a prerequisite for licensure, registration, or certification by a board of the Department of Health Professions, located in the Commonwealth, that is established or contracted for by a statewide association, that is exempt under 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code, and that primarily represents health care professionals licensed to practice dentistry, dental hygiene, medicine, or osteopathic medicine in multiple specialties, shall be immune from civil liability for any act, decision, omission, or utterance done or made in performance of his duties while serving as a member of or consultant to such committee, board, group, commission, or other entity. No active participant in a professional program described in this subsection shall be employed or engaged by such professional program or have a financial ownership interest in such professional program.
Plain-English Summary
Subsection A immunizes members of, and health care professional consultants to, committees that primarily review, evaluate, or make recommendations on a wide range of institutional questions: how long patients stay in a facility, whether particular services were medically necessary, the efficient use and quality of health care and EMS services, the adequacy of professional services, competency for staff privileges, the reasonableness of charges, and patient safety more broadly. That immunity only attaches if the committee itself traces back to a qualifying source — federal or state law or regulation, a national accrediting body tied to Medicare conditions of participation, approved guidelines from a statewide or local health provider association, or one or more hospitals, health systems, community services boards, behavioral health authorities, or a governmental agency — and only if the member didn’t act in bad faith or with malicious intent.
Subsection B addresses a narrower category: committees focused on career fatigue and wellness programs for licensed health professionals or students in qualifying graduate programs, run by a statewide professional association. Members and consultants serving on those committees get the same style of immunity, with one added safeguard — anyone actively participating in the wellness program itself can’t also be employed by, engaged by, or financially invested in that program, which keeps the people running the oversight separate from the people benefiting from it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What kinds of committee functions trigger immunity under subsection A?
Reviewing or making recommendations on patient stay duration, the medical necessity of services, efficient use or quality monitoring of health care and EMS facilities and services, the adequacy of professional services, competency for staff privileges, the reasonableness of charges, and patient safety.
Does this immunity require the committee to have a particular institutional source?
Yes. The entity must be established under federal or state law or regulation, a Medicare-conditions-of-participation accrediting body, approved professional association guidelines, or one or more hospitals, health systems, community services boards, behavioral health authorities, or a governmental agency.
What does subsection B protect?
Members of, or health care professional consultants to, committees that review career fatigue and wellness programs or arrange outpatient wellness care for licensed health professionals or qualifying graduate students.
Can someone who actively participates in a wellness program also be employed by or invested in it?
No. Subsection B bars any active participant in the program from being employed or engaged by it or holding a financial ownership interest in it.
Does bad faith or malicious intent forfeit this immunity?
For subsection A's peer-review and utilization-review committees, yes — that immunity depends on the act, decision, omission, or utterance not being made in bad faith or with malicious intent. Subsection B's wellness-program immunity carries no such carve-out in its own text.
Amendment History
Code 1950, § 8-654.9; 1976, c. 611; 1977, c. 617; 1981, c. 174; 1987, c. 713; 1989, c. 729; 1993, c. 702; 2001, c. 381; 2002, c. 675; 2006, c. 412; 2014, cc. 17, 320, 363; 2020, cc. 198, 1093; 2021, Sp. Sess. I, cc. 5, 243; 2024, cc. 96, 126; 2025, c. 183.
Source & verification. Section text and amendment history are
reproduced verbatim from the Code of Virginia, published by the
Code of Virginia, Virginia Division of Legislative Automated Systems. Last verified July 16, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: virginia peer review committee immunityhospital utilization review committee immunity virginiacareer fatigue and wellness program committee immunity virginia