The Hiram W. Davis Medical Center has been slated for closure since August 2024, but some Virginia lawmakers remain hesitant to support the plan as families raise concerns about where residents with complex medical needs will go.
The state-operated medical center in Petersburg provides long-term care for patients with intellectual or developmental disabilities.
On Thursday, the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services presented an updated closure plan to the Joint Commission on Health Care. Lawmakers on the commission must cast an advisory vote by the end of July recommending whether the state should move forward with closing the facility. The General Assembly would make the final decision in 2027.
Several lawmakers expressed uncertainty during the meeting, saying constituents have contacted them with concerns about the future of residents who require intensive care.
There are currently 32 residents living at the 94-bed facility, according to state officials. Only about a quarter of those residents currently have discharge plans.
Many members of the commission are new this year and are now confronting the issue as the proposed closure date, December 2027, draws closer.
The original closure plan developed by the state department assumed that a decision would be made in 2026, according to Angela Harvell, deputy commissioner for facility services with the behavioral health department.
Department officials said the closure is necessary because of deteriorating conditions inside the 50-year-old building. Problems with HVAC, plumbing and electrical systems pose ongoing risks to residents and staff, Harvell said.
“The issue is not just the cost, and the issue is not just the infrastructure,” Harvell told lawmakers. “It’s the combination of the safety risks, the long-term care and the well-being of the residents.”
The facility requires extensive renovations that cannot safely occur while residents remain in the building.
The state estimated that it would cost $285 million over six years to continue operations and renovations at the center. Closing the facility and reinvesting resources into the community or the Southeastern Virginia Training Center, which provides residential care for a similar patient population in Chesapeake, would cost the state about $115 million, saving the state roughly $170 million over six years.
Since the closure process began, state officials and stakeholders have held more than 30 meetings focused on how to safely transition residents and wind down operations at the facility.
Lawmakers, however, requested another public comment period at an upcoming June meeting. The advisory vote will follow in July.
Alternative care for patients with significant needs is hard to find
Among the families worried about the closure is Martha Bryant. Her son, Taylor, has lived at Hiram Davis since 2017, after the state closed the Central Virginia Training Center in Lynchburg. Taylor and his brother, Tyler, lived at the Lynchburg facility for about 20 years.
Many Hiram Davis residents had transferred from other state training centers that have shut down over the years.
Taylor has a tracheostomy to help him breathe, a gastrostomy tube surgically placed under the skin into the stomach to provide long-term access for nutrition and medications, three rare diseases and cerebral palsy.
His daily care costs exceed $600, Bryant said. Taylor relies on Medicaid and Medicare, which reimburse providers at lower rates than the actual cost of services.
The state’s closure plan suggests that some patients with significant medical needs could transfer to the Southeastern Virginia Training Center in Chesapeake — 227 miles from Bryant’s Amherst County home.
The training center is a state-operated intermediate care facility for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The House and Senate caboose budget for 2026 directed funds to convert 10 existing beds at the center so that they can accommodate a skilled nursing level of care.
Bryant said she already tried to move Taylor to a skilled nursing facility closer to home, but multiple facilities rejected him because of the complexity and cost of his care. He’s nonverbal and nonambulatory and cannot call for help if he needs it. Bryant also needs to be able to stop what she’s doing and travel to the hospital nearest to Talyor in case of emergencies.
Contending with an aging infrastructure
Del. Otto Wachsmann Jr., R-Sussex County, a member of the commission, said he toured the Hiram Davis center before the most recent General Assembly session and understands why the building concerns state officials.
“When entering the building, it’s like going back into the 1970s,” Wachsmann said during Thursday’s meeting. The state has not sufficiently maintained the building, he said.
State officials said the facility has received only limited repairs over the years and that aging infrastructure continues to create safety concerns. Between 2021 and 2024, legionella bacteria, which can cause severe pneumonia, was detected in the building’s water system.
Still, Wachsmann questioned whether community group homes and other facilities can meet the needs of current residents.
“Some of the family members told me they’ve tried dozens and dozens of facilities to get their loved ones transferred in and they’re not eligible to go there,” Waschmann said.
The behavioral health department anticipates that the 11 residents with intellectual disabilities and developmental disabilities could choose to transition to a group home, community intermediate care facilities or nursing facilities or the Southeast Virginia Training Center.
