# Virginia HB865: Workers' compensation; presumption of compensability for certain cancers.

Virginia HB865, Workers' compensation; presumption of compensability for certain cancers., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Rae Cousins (Democratic); status passed house, last action 2026-03-04 (Continued to 2027 in Finance and Appropriations (14-Y 1-N)) (as of 2026-10-13).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB865-2026
- As of: 2026-10-13
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia HB865
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Workers' compensation; presumption of compensability for certain cancers.
- Status: passed house
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-01-13
- Last action: 2026-03-04, Continued to 2027 in Finance and Appropriations (14-Y 1-N)
- Sponsor: Rae Cousins (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Subjects: Finance and Appropriations
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 7 (183 yes, 1 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 0

## Summary

Workers' compensation; presumption of compensability for certain cancers. Expands the workers' compensation presumption of compensability for certain cancers causing the death or disability of certain employees who have completed five years of service in their position to include lung cancer and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma for any individual diagnosed with such a condition on or after July 1, 2027.

## Bill overview

No economic impacts identified for this bill.

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Rae Cousins (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-03-04 | Senate | Continued to 2027 in Finance and Appropriations | pass | 14 | 1 |   |
| 2026-02-23 | Senate | Reported from Commerce and Labor and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations | pass | 15 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-13 | House | Read third time and passed House Block Vote | pass | 96 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-09 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting | pass | 7 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-09 | House | Reported from Appropriations | pass | 22 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-03 | House | Reported from Labor and Commerce with amendment(s) and referred to Appropriations | pass | 22 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-29 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) and referring to Appropriations | pass | 7 | 0 |   |

## Actions (20)

- 2026-03-04: Continued to 2027 in Finance and Appropriations (14-Y 1-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-23: Reported from Commerce and Labor and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (15-Y 0-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-16: Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor (Senate)
- 2026-02-16: Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (Senate)
- 2026-02-13: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB865) (House)
- 2026-02-13: Read third time and passed House Block Vote (96-Y 0-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-12: Engrossed by House as amended (House)
- 2026-02-12: committee amendments agreed to (House)
- 2026-02-12: Read second time (House)
- 2026-02-11: Read first time (House)
- 2026-02-09: Subcommittee recommends reporting (7-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-02-09: Reported from Appropriations (22-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-02-03: Reported from Labor and Commerce with amendment(s) and referred to Appropriations (22-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-02-03: Assigned HAPP sub: Compensation and Retirement (House)
- 2026-01-29: House subcommittee offered (House)
- 2026-01-29: Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) and referring to Appropriations (7-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-01-29: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB865) (House)
- 2026-01-22: Assigned HCL sub: Subcommittee #2 (House)
- 2026-01-13: Referred to Committee on Labor and Commerce (House)
- 2026-01-13: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26103809D (House)

## Bill text

- Engrossed, 2026-02-12: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1138320.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1138319.PDF)
- Amendment, 2026-02-03: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1115286.HTML)
- Amendment, 2026-01-30: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1103824.HTML)
- Amendment, 2026-01-29: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1102986.HTML)
- Introduced, 2026-01-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1086548.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1086547.PDF)

## Related bills

- HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with rental agreement. (signed)
- HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for certain individuals. (signed)
- HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, termination by landlord. (signed)
- HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil penalty. (signed)

## Sources
- [Engrossed (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1138320.HTML)
- [Engrossed (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1138319.PDF)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1115286.HTML)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1103824.HTML)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1102986.HTML)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1086548.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1086547.PDF)

## Related
- [HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB5-2026)
- [SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB199-2026)
- [HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB95-2026)
- [HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1393-2026)
- [HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, terminat…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB834-2026)
- [HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB675-2026)
- [Virginia bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia/bills)
- [Virginia state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB865-2026 (as of 2026-10-13).