We’ve now officially submitted Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to the Virginia House of Delegates. These requests are specifically targeted at uncovering what happened behind the scenes with HB1753—a bill that would have required the Virginia Department of Health to adopt federal minimum staffing standards for nursing homes and increase Medicaid payment transparency.

Despite its potential to save lives and protect vulnerable Virginians, HB1753 was quietly killed in subcommittee. No explanation. No debate. No accountability. That’s where FOIA comes in.

📝 What We’re Requesting:
 • Emails and correspondence between legislators, lobbyists, and corporate nursing home reps
 • Internal committee notes and staff memos on HB1753
 • Lobbyist meeting records and communications
 • Public comment submissions that were (or weren’t) considered

These are public records—and under Virginia law, we have every right to see them.

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📣 Why FOIA Matters

FOIA is one of the most powerful tools citizens have to pull back the curtain on government. It exists so that we, the people, can see who is influencing legislation, how decisions are made, and why critical bills—like those designed to protect nursing home residents from abuse, neglect, and corporate cost-cutting—never see the light of day.

Without FOIA, it’s far too easy for powerful lobbyists and corporate interests to steer our laws in the shadows. But with it, we can expose what they’d rather keep hidden—and use that information to hold our elected officials accountable.

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📬 What’s Next

Once we receive the FOIA results, we’ll publish a summary here. If there’s proof that this bill was blocked due to lobbying pressure or financial influence, we won’t let that slide. Virginians deserve transparency—and our loved ones in long-term care deserve better.

If you’re angry about the abuse, the neglect, the Medicare and Medicaid fraud—and the fact that the legislators who could fix it keep choosing silence—you should be angry that we even need FOIA requests to get the truth.

But this is how we fight.

➡️ Keep sharing the petition.
➡️ Keep contacting your legislators.
➡️ Keep demanding answers.

Because silence protects power. And we are not here to make power comfortable.

— Victoria Jackson
Author of Dale’s Law
Certified Nursing Assistant & Long-Term Care Advocate