With the new year comes new laws for Virginia, including one that restricts social media time for teens.
VIRGINIA, USA — Boosting minimum wage, eliminating interest for medical debts, and requiring fentanyl testing for emergency room drug screenings are just a few of the new laws taking effect in Virginia on Jan. 1.
“A lot of these laws are about improving the lives of everyday Virginians,” 13News Now political analyst Leslie Caughell said.
According to Caughell, the laws are an example of government working for the people who elected it.
“I never want to use the term ‘common sense,’ but I think some of these laws for a lot of voters, if you asked them, ‘Well, should this be something that’s mandated by the legislative assembly?’ They’d be like ‘Well yeah, of course.’”
Those laws include eliminating out-of-pocket costs for diagnostic breast examinations. That means under state-regulated insurance, patients can’t be charged coinsurance, copayments, or a deductible for diagnostic mammograms, breast ultrasounds, or a breast MRI. Also included are expanded no-cost prostate cancer screenings for men over age 50 and high-risk 40-year-olds.
“I think screenings for cancer, especially routine screenings like prostate and breast cancer, if I pay for insurance, they should be free. It’s not free—I pay for it with my insurance,” said Kaicy Duckworth, a Virginia woman.
A new law that Caughell says is poised to have a substantial effect is the Consumer Data Protection Act. It requires social media apps to limit kids under 16 to one hour of screen time per day, per app.
“I think that encourages them to go outside and socialize more. So, I don’t think it’s a bad thing; it’ll just be a hard change,” said Raquel Cruz, another Virginian.
Social media companies are tasked with using “commercially reasonable methods” to determine whether a user is younger than 16. Parents will have the option to increase or decrease the one hour of screen time.
Other Jan. 1 laws will change the hours telemarketers can call or text you and require manufacturers to test baby food for toxic heavy metals, then make the results available with a QR code on the label.
Where the commonwealth won’t see any changes are in protections to abortions, gun control, or Medicaid expansion. Caughell says that may change in the next legislative session.
“With a new Democratic governor coming in, I expect a couple of things are going to be on the table that haven’t been thus far.”
Virginia’s next General Assembly session starts Jan. 14. It will last 60 days.