← The business of practice, every jurisdiction · Virginia licensure
What Virginia’s statute, administrative rules and chiropractic board publish on eight topics of running a practice, quoted as published, each with its citation as printed, its source and the date we read it. Read on 9 October 2026.
Advertising · Titles and claims · Prepaid care and financial arrangements · Discounts, free services and inducements · Record retention · Assistants and delegation · Corporate practice and ownership · Telehealth
No person licensed, certified, registered, or permitted by one of the boards within the Department shall use any form of advertising that contains any false, fraudulent, misleading, or deceptive statement or claim.§ 54.1-2403 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter24 · read 9 October 2026
No licensee of the board shall advertise information that is false, misleading, or deceptive. For an advertisement for a single practitioner, it shall be presumed that the practitioner is responsible and accountable for the validity and truthfulness of its content. For an advertisement for a practice in which there is more than one practitioner, the name of the practitioner responsible and accountable for the content of the advertisement shall be documented and maintained by the practice for at least two years.18VAC85-20-30 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter20 · read 9 October 2026
Documentation, scientific and otherwise, supporting claims made in an advertisement shall be maintained and available for the board's review for at least two years.18VAC85-20-30 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter20 · read 9 October 2026
A. The Board may refuse to issue a certificate or license to any applicant; reprimand any person; place any person on probation for such time as it may designate; impose a monetary penalty or terms as it may designate on any person; suspend any license for a stated period of time or indefinitely; or revoke any license for any of the following acts of unprofessional conduct:§ 54.1-2915 A · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
15. Publishing in any manner an advertisement relating to his professional practice that contains a claim of superiority or violates Board regulations governing advertising;§ 54.1-2915 A 15 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
16. Performing any act likely to deceive, defraud, or harm the public;§ 54.1-2915 A 16 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
B. (Effective until July 1, 2027) No person regulated under this chapter shall use the title "Doctor" or the abbreviation "Dr." in writing or in advertising in connection with his practice unless he simultaneously uses words, initials, an abbreviation or designation, or other language that identifies the type of practice for which he is licensed.§ 54.1-2903 B · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
B. (Effective July 1, 2027) No person regulated under this chapter shall use the title "Doctor" or the abbreviation "Dr." in writing or in advertising in connection with his practice unless he simultaneously uses words, initials, an abbreviation or designation, or other language that identifies the type of practice for which he is licensed.§ 54.1-2903 B · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
A. Any person shall be regarded as practicing the healing arts who actually engages in such practice as defined in this chapter, or who opens an office for such purpose, or who advertises or announces to the public in any manner a readiness to practice or who uses in connection with his name the words or letters "Doctor," "Dr.," "M.D.," "D.O.," "D.P.M.," "D.C.," "Healer," "N.P.," or any other title, word, letter or designation intending to designate or imply that he is a practitioner of the healing arts or that he is able to heal, cure or relieve those suffering from any injury, deformity or disease.§ 54.1-2903 A · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
No person shall practice or hold himself out as qualified to practice medicine, osteopathy, chiropractic, or podiatry without obtaining a license from the Board of Medicine as provided in this chapter.§ 54.1-2929 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
No practitioner shall deliberately make a false or misleading statement regarding the practitioner's skill or the efficacy or value of a medication, treatment, or procedure prescribed or directed by the practitioner in the treatment of any disease or condition.18VAC85-20-28 A 1 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter20 · read 9 October 2026
A. The Board may refuse to issue a certificate or license to any applicant; reprimand any person; place any person on probation for such time as it may designate; impose a monetary penalty or terms as it may designate on any person; suspend any license for a stated period of time or indefinitely; or revoke any license for any of the following acts of unprofessional conduct:§ 54.1-2915 A · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
9. Violating provisions of this chapter on division of fees or practicing any branch of the healing arts in violation of the provisions of this chapter;§ 54.1-2915 A 9 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
Practitioners licensed under this chapter shall maintain health records, as defined in § 32.1-127.1:03 , for a minimum of six years following the last patient encounter.§ 54.1-2910.4 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
However, such practitioners are not required to maintain health records for longer than 12 years from the date of creation except for (i) health records of a minor child, including immunizations, which shall be maintained until the child reaches the age of 18 or becomes emancipated, with a minimum time for record retention of six years from the last patient encounter regardless of the age of the child or (ii) health records that are required by contractual obligation or federal law to be maintained for a longer period of time.§ 54.1-2910.4 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
Health records that have previously been transferred to another practitioner or health care provider or provided to the patient or his personal representative are not required to be maintained beyond such transfer or provision.§ 54.1-2910.4 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
C. Practitioners shall properly manage patient records and shall maintain timely, accurate, legible, and complete patient records.18VAC85-20-26 C · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter20 · read 9 October 2026
D. Practitioners shall maintain a patient record for a minimum of six years following the last patient encounter with the following exceptions:18VAC85-20-26 D · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter20 · read 9 October 2026
1. Records of a minor child, including immunizations, shall be maintained until the child reaches 18 years of age or becomes emancipated, with a minimum time for record retention of six years from the last patient encounter regardless of the age of the child;18VAC85-20-26 D 1 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter20 · read 9 October 2026
2. Records that have previously been transferred to another practitioner or health care provider or provided to the patient or the patient's personal representative; or18VAC85-20-26 D 2 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter20 · read 9 October 2026
3. Records that are required by contractual obligation or federal law to be maintained for a longer period of time.18VAC85-20-26 D 3 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter20 · read 9 October 2026
A. The provisions of this chapter shall not prevent or prohibit:§ 54.1-2901 A · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
6. Any practitioner licensed or certified by the Board from delegating to personnel supervised by him, such activities or functions as are nondiscretionary and do not require the exercise of professional judgment for their performance and which are usually or customarily delegated to such persons by practitioners of the healing arts, if such activities or functions are authorized by and performed for such practitioners of the healing arts and responsibility for such activities or functions is assumed by such practitioners of the healing arts;§ 54.1-2901 A 6 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
A. No practitioner shall:18VAC85-20-29 A · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter20 · read 9 October 2026
1. Knowingly allow subordinates to jeopardize patient safety or provide patient care outside of the subordinate's scope of practice or area of responsibility. Practitioners shall delegate patient care only to subordinates who are properly trained and supervised;18VAC85-20-29 A 1 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter20 · read 9 October 2026
A. The Board may refuse to issue a certificate or license to any applicant; reprimand any person; place any person on probation for such time as it may designate; impose a monetary penalty or terms as it may designate on any person; suspend any license for a stated period of time or indefinitely; or revoke any license for any of the following acts of unprofessional conduct:§ 54.1-2915 A · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
11. Aiding or abetting, having professional connection with, or lending his name to any person known to him to be practicing illegally any of the healing arts;§ 54.1-2915 A 11 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
This chapter shall not be construed to prohibit, forbid or prevent (i) any approved school of medicine, osteopathy, podiatry or chiropractic from contracting with any licensed practitioner to teach or participate in a preceptorship program in such college on such terms of compensation as may be mutually satisfactory, which contract may prescribe the extent, if any, to which the practitioner may engage in private practice, or (ii) any institution, hospital, treatment center, sanatorium or other similar agency under the management and control of an agency of the Commonwealth from employing or contracting with any licensed practitioner to furnish professional services in the work of the agency, or to persons entitled to receive such care from the agency.§ 54.1-2941 · law.lis.virginia.gov · chapter29 · read 9 October 2026
Shown only where the jurisdiction publishes a provision specific to chiropractic.
unreadable Not read on 9 October 2026: www.dhp.virginia.gov · 85-12.pdf · DISALLOWED (robots 200, disallow:/media/); listed on the board's Guidance Documents page as 85-12 Telemedicine, effective August 19, 2021. Chapter 29, Chapter 24 and 18VAC85-20 were read; the telemedicine provisions found there (§ 54.1-2901 A 33 and 35) name doctors of medicine or osteopathy and other professions and not chiropractic.The jurisdiction is the authority on everything here. These pages quote what the statute, the rules and the board publish and the date we read them; they do not interpret it. Laws and rules change. Confirm anything you intend to act on with the board.