A bill to create a chronic kidney disease registry was signed into law by Gov. Albert Bryan, Jr. Wednesday, along with a bill appropriating $25,000 to the Virgin Islands Olympic Committee.
The kidney registry was introduced on the floor in early February, with members of the Health, Hospitals and Human Services Committee expressing their hope that the data collected from the registry will help improve patient outcomes.
Diabetes is currently the sixth leading cause of death in the territory, and testifiers in support of the bill have said that showing patients how to better manage the disease may also reduce incidents of end-stage kidney disease.
In his transmittal letter Wednesday to Senate President Novelle Francis approving the bills, the governor agreed, saying, “The Disease registry to track these three high prevalence conditions, is the first step to assist with this process. Early detection and treatment offered to persons moving through the continuum of disease not only extends lives, but also ensures a better quality of life.”
Bryan also signed into law a bill appropriating $25,000 to the V.I. Olympic Committee from the Tourism Advertising Revolving Fund. One section also corrected an oversight so that all teams and their coaches are honored, and another section that corrects the intended recipients of miscellaneous funding from benefitting one private boxing organization to all V.I. boxers.
Bryan recently also signed:
– A bill amending Act 8437, which originally authorized transferring WAPA land in Hannah’s Rest for a police station. He removed the clause requiring the property to revert back to WAPA if a station isn’t built within five years is removed;
– A bill amending the V.I. Code’s scholarship law, requiring regulations to establish clear requirements for part-time student participation. This includes timelines for degree completion, minimum credit hours per semester, and how students fulfill their work obligation within the territory.
– A bill amending Act 8681, establishing the Sixth Constitutional Convention, and its amendment Act 8788, to allow for an at-large delegate selection, and permit delegates to use accrued annual leave for absences. Those without accrued leave can take unpaid leave without impacting seniority or employment rights. A petition for at-large delegate status requires 25 qualified voter signatures from each district (total of 50 signatures).
