At the 1995 Regular Session, the General Assembly passed Senate Joint Resolution No. 313 (Appendix A), which established a joint subcommittee to study issues regarding informed consent to medical procedures and treatment. The resolution directed the subcommittee to examine several key issues including (i) the availability and adequacy of education and training for Virginia practitioners on informed consent practices and protocols; (ii) whether language, cultural barriers, and disabilities affect the ability of health care professionals to obtain informed consent, and the need to overcome these problems; and (iii) the effectiveness in improving the informed consent process through explicit legislative or regulatory requirements and the criminal and civil penalties for failure to comply.