23-77.4 - Medical center management.
§ 23-77.4. Medical center management.
A. The General Assembly recognizes and finds that the economic viability ofthe University of Virginia Medical Center, hereafter referred to as theMedical Center, together with the requirement for its specialized managementand operation, and the need of the Medical Center to participate incooperative arrangements reflective of changes in health care delivery, asset forth in § 23-77.3, are dependent upon the ability of the management ofthe Medical Center to make and implement promptly decisions necessary toconduct the affairs of the Medical Center in an efficient, competitivemanner. The General Assembly also recognizes and finds that it is criticalto, and in the best interests of, the Commonwealth that the Universitycontinue to fulfill its mission of providing quality medical and healthsciences education and related research and, through the presence of itsMedical Center, continue to provide for the care, treatment, health-relatedservices, and education activities associated with Virginia patients,including indigent and medically indigent patients. Because the GeneralAssembly finds that the ability of the University to fulfill this mission ishighly dependent upon revenues derived from providing health care through itsMedical Center, and because the General Assembly also finds that the abilityof the Medical Center to continue to be a reliable source of such revenues isheavily dependent upon its ability to compete with other providers of healthcare that are not subject to the requirements of law applicable to agenciesof the Commonwealth, the University is hereby authorized to implement thefollowing modifications to the management and operation of the affairs of theMedical Center in order to enhance its economic viability:
B. Capital projects; leases of property; procurement of goods, services andconstruction.
1. Capital projects.
a. For any Medical Center capital project entirely funded by a nongeneralfund appropriation made by the General Assembly, all post-appropriationreview, approval, administrative, and policy and procedure functionsperformed by the Department of General Services, the Division of Engineeringand Buildings, the Department of Planning and Budget and any other agencythat supports the functions performed by these departments are herebydelegated to the University, subject to the following stipulations andconditions: (i) the Board of Visitors shall develop and implement anappropriate system of policies, procedures, reviews and approvals for MedicalCenter capital projects to which this subdivision applies; (ii) the system soadopted shall provide for the review and approval of any Medical Centercapital project to which this subdivision applies in order to ensure that,except as provided in clause (iii), the cost of any such capital project doesnot exceed the sum appropriated therefor and that the project otherwisecomplies with all requirements of the Code of Virginia regarding capitalprojects, excluding only the post-appropriation review, approval,administrative, and policy and procedure functions performed by theDepartment of General Services, the Division of Engineering and Buildings,the Department of Planning and Budget and any other agency that supports thefunctions performed by these departments; (iii) the Board of Visitors may,during any fiscal year, approve a transfer of up to a total of 15 percent ofthe total nongeneral fund appropriation for the Medical Center in order tosupplement funds appropriated for a capital project or capital projects ofthe Medical Center, provided that the Board of Visitors finds that thetransfer is necessary to effectuate the original intention of the GeneralAssembly in making the appropriation for the capital project or projects inquestion; (iv) the University shall report to the Department of GeneralServices on the status of any such capital project prior to commencement ofconstruction of, and at the time of acceptance of, any such capital project;and (v) the University shall ensure that Building Officials and CodeAdministrators (BOCA) Code and fire safety inspections of any such projectare conducted and that such projects are inspected by the State Fire Marshalor his designee prior to certification for building occupancy by theUniversity's assistant state building official to whom such inspectionresponsibility has been delegated pursuant to § 36-98.1. Nothing in thissection shall be deemed to relieve the University of any reportingrequirement pursuant to § 2.2-1513. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the termsand structure of any financing of any capital project to which thissubdivision applies shall be approved pursuant to § 2.2-2416.
b. No capital project to which this subdivision applies shall be materiallyincreased in size or materially changed in scope beyond the plans andjustifications that were the basis for the project's appropriation unless:(i) the Governor determines that such increase in size or change in scope isnecessary due to an emergency or (ii) the General Assembly approves theincrease or change in a subsequent appropriation for the project. Afterconstruction of any such capital project has commenced, no such increase orchange may be made during construction unless the conditions in (i) or (ii)have been satisfied.
2. Leases of property.
a. The University shall be exempt from the provisions of § 2.2-1149 and fromany rules, regulations and guidelines of the Division of Engineering andBuildings in relation to leases of real property that it enters into onbehalf of the Medical Center and, pursuant to policies and procedures adoptedby the Board of Visitors, may enter into such leases subject to the followingconditions: (i) the lease must be an operating lease and not a capital leaseas defined in guidelines established by the Secretary of Finance andGenerally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP); (ii) the University'sdecision to enter into such a lease shall be based upon cost, demonstratedneed, and compliance with guidelines adopted by the Board of Visitors whichdirect that competition be sought to the maximum practical degree, that allcosts of occupancy be considered, and that the use of the space to be leasedactually is necessary and is efficiently planned; (iii) the form of the leaseis approved by the Special Assistant Attorney General representing theUniversity; (iv) the lease otherwise meets all requirements of law; (v) theleased property is certified for occupancy by the building official of thepolitical subdivision in which the leased property is located; and (vi) uponentering such leases and upon any subsequent amendment of such leases, theUniversity shall provide copies of all lease documents and any attachmentsthereto to the Department of General Services.
b. Notwithstanding the provisions of §§ 2.2-1155 and 23-4.1, but subject topolicies and procedures adopted by the Board of Visitors, the University maylease, for a purpose consistent with the mission of the Medical Center andfor a term not to exceed 50 years, property in the possession or control ofthe Medical Center.
c. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the terms and structure of any financingarrangements secured by capital leases or other similar lease financingagreements shall be approved pursuant to § 2.2-2416.
3. Procurement of goods, services and construction.
Contracts awarded by the University in compliance with this section, onbehalf of the Medical Center, for the procurement of goods; services,including professional services; construction; and information technology andtelecommunications, shall be exempt from (i) the Virginia Public ProcurementAct (§ 2.2-4300 et seq.), except as provided below; (ii) the requirements ofthe Division of Purchases and Supply of the Department of General Services asset forth in Article 3 (§ 2.2-1109 et seq.) of Chapter 11 of Title 2.2; (iii)the requirements of the Division of Engineering and Buildings as set forth inArticle 4 (§ 2.2-1129 et seq.) of Chapter 11 of Title 2.2; and (iv) theauthority of the Chief Information Officer and the Virginia InformationTechnologies Agency as set forth in Chapter 20.1 (§ 2.2-2005 et seq.) ofTitle 2.2 regarding the review and approval of contracts for (a) theconstruction of Medical Center capital projects and (b) informationtechnology and telecommunications projects; however, the provisions of thissubdivision may not be implemented by the University until such time as theBoard of Visitors has adopted guidelines generally applicable to theprocurement of goods, services, construction and information technology andtelecommunications projects by the Medical Center or by the University onbehalf of the Medical Center. Such guidelines shall be based upon competitiveprinciples and shall in each instance seek competition to the maximumpractical degree. The guidelines shall implement a system of competitivenegotiation for professional services; shall prohibit discrimination becauseof race, religion, color, sex, or national origin of the bidder or offeror inthe solicitation or award of contracts; may take into account in all casesthe dollar amount of the intended procurement, the term of the anticipatedcontract, and the likely extent of competition; may implement aprequalification procedure for contractors or products; may includeprovisions for cooperative procurement arrangements with private health oreducational institutions, or with public agencies or institutions of theseveral states, territories of the United States or the District of Columbia;shall incorporate the prompt payment principles of §§ 2.2-4350 and 2.2-4354;and may implement provisions of law. The following sections of the VirginiaPublic Procurement Act shall continue to apply to procurements by the MedicalCenter or by the University on behalf of the Medical Center: §§ 2.2-4311,2.2-4315, and 2.2-4342 (which section shall not be construed to requirecompliance with the prequalification application procedures of subsection Bof § 2.2-4317), 2.2-4330, 2.2-4333 through 2.2-4341, and 2.2-4367 through2.2-4377.
C. Subject to such conditions as may be prescribed in the budget bill under §2.2-1509 as enacted into law by the General Assembly, the State Comptrollershall credit, on a monthly basis, to the nongeneral fund operating cashbalances of the University of Virginia Medical Center the imputed interestearned by the investment of such nongeneral fund operating cash balances,including but not limited to those balances derived from patient carerevenues, on deposit with the State Treasurer.
(1996, cc. 933, 995; 2002, cc. 574, 602; 2004, c. 145; 2010, cc. 136, 145.)