Shocking and Sad: Peter Anderson Talks to CBS 6 about VDH’s Failure to Enforce Nursing Home Insurance Law

"If nursing homes are allowed to skirt Virginia law and not be insured up to the damage cap without consequence, this could mean that many, many victims of nursing home abuse and negligence... cannot receive justice." — Peter Anderson, Rawls Law Group

A Virginia nursing home abuse attorney is speaking out against what he calls a serious and systemic failure by the state's health department to enforce its own insurance regulations — a lapse he warns could leave vulnerable patients and their families without any meaningful path to justice.

Peter Anderson of Rawls Law Group, who also served on former Governor Glenn Youngkin's nursing home advisory board, reacted with alarm after internal emails revealed that the Virginia Department of Health's Office of Licensure and Certification had not been enforcing a state law requiring nursing homes to carry minimum liability insurance. His reaction was pointed: the problem isn't theoretical — it is one he has seen in his own casework.

Anderson says that even before this enforcement gap became public, he had routinely encountered nursing homes that were underinsured when representing clients who had suffered serious harm. Under Virginia law, facilities are required to carry at least $1 million in non-eroding general liability coverage and $2.7 million in professional liability coverage per occurrence. Anderson says he has found providers falling short of those thresholds with troubling regularity.

"Unfortunately, it's very common," Anderson said, "and as a nursing home abuse attorney, I'm not sure why it's that common, because the law is very clear that these facilities are supposed to be insured up to the damage cap."

Anderson's frustration deepened when he learned the scope of VDH's inaction. A December 2025 internal email — obtained by CBS 6 through a public records request — revealed a VDH supervisor acknowledging that the Office of Licensure and Certification was "not enforcing this requirement." That same email speculated about whether a reporter would discover the issue, raising further concerns about transparency.

For Anderson, the VDH's acknowledgment crossed a clear line. A regulatory agency that identifies a legal violation but chooses not to act, he argues, is not fulfilling its fundamental purpose.

"It's shocking, and it's sad, because the agency is there to regulate nursing facilities," Anderson said. "If they know that there's a problem and the law is clear, they should take action."

At the center of Anderson's concern is what the enforcement failure ultimately means for harmed patients. Virginia's insurance minimums exist precisely to ensure that when courts award damages, those awards can actually be collected. Without adequate coverage, even a successful legal judgment may be uncollectable — leaving victims who endured abuse, neglect, or the death of a loved one with no real compensation.

"If nursing homes are allowed to skirt Virginia law and not be insured up to the damage cap without consequence," Anderson warned, "this could mean that many, many victims of nursing home abuse and negligence and people who have even died cannot receive justice and compensation for what they've been through."

VDH's new OLC Director, April Dovel, pushed back on characterizations that the agency was ignorant of its own regulations, attributing the breakdown to confusion around the non-eroding portion of the coverage requirement. The department said it has since developed a corrective plan that includes reviewing documentation gaps, notifying the industry of insurance requirements, and offering a 30-day grace period before enforcement actions begin.

For Anderson, those steps — while perhaps a start — do not erase the harm caused by years of lax oversight. His message to regulators is simple: the law exists for a reason, the victims are real, and the obligation to act is not optional.

Inside and outside the courtroom, our law firm works tirelessly to ensure the protection of patients. If you or a loved one has been injured by a healthcare provider at a long-term care facility or nursing home, you may have a medical malpractice claim. At Rawls Law Group, our goal is to provide patients and their families with the best legal service possible, and that starts with protecting patients even before we know them. Contact our office today and schedule a free consultation with our team.

Link to Full CBS 6 Article: 'We are not enforcing': Email details Virginia nursing home oversight gap