AARP Virginia Pushes for Lower Drug Costs, Paid Leave and Crypto Fraud Protections at General Assembly

fotoguy22/Getty Images/iStockphoto

AARP Virginia volunteer advocates will urge lawmakers to act on the organization’s legislative agenda when the General Assembly convenes Jan. 14, including three priority issues: creating a Prescription Drug Affordability Board, establishing paid family leave and protecting consumers from cryptocurrency kiosk fraud.

AARP Virginia’s 2026 legislative agenda starts with lowering prescription drug costs. The organization supports a bill to create a Prescription Drug Affordability Board (PDAB) with the authority to set upper payment limits on certain high-cost medications. The measure would complement recent federal changes allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices and extend savings to Virginians not enrolled in Medicare. A 2025 poll found 84% of Virginians support the policy. The bill passed in 2024 and 2025 with bipartisan backing but was vetoed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin. Delegate Karrie Delaney (D-Centreville) and Senator Creigh Deeds (D-Charlottesville) are introducing the 2026 bill.

At 11 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 13, AARP Virginia will participate in a press conference with Freedom Virginia to announce the introduction of the Affordable Medicine Act to establish a PDAB and lower the cost of medicine. Deeds and Delaney will be joined at the press conference by Delegate Leslie Mehta (D-Chesterfield); Tim Barry, a Richmond resident affected by the legislation; Freedom Virginia Co-Executive Director Rhena Hicks; and AARP Virginia State Director Jim Dau.

The press conference will take place in the Senate Briefing Room at the General Assembly Building. Legislators will be joined by advocates and an impacted Virginian who will share their experiences with skyrocketing prescription drug costs.

“Too many people can’t afford lifesaving medications because the confusing prescription drug pipeline prioritizes profit over patients,” said Jim Dau, AARP Virginia State Director. “We are working hard to put fairness and accountability into the system because medication only works if people can afford it.” He added that AARP also supports greater transparency in the drug supply chain and other cost-reduction strategies, such as bulk purchasing and regulating pharmacy benefit managers.

AARP will also advocate for paid family and medical leave. More than 1.5 million Virginians serve as caregivers—nearly a quarter of the adult population—and 57% of them work. Many must take unpaid time off or leave their jobs entirely, jeopardizing their financial security. Delegate Briana Sewell (D-Woodbridge) and Senator Jennifer Boysko (D-Herndon) are carrying this legislation.

Another priority: regulating cryptocurrency kiosks, or “crypto ATMs,” which scammers often use to defraud older Virginians. In the first half of 2024 alone, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) received reports of fraud losses through crypto kiosks totaling $65 million—$46 million of which was reported by victims 60 and older. AARP backs legislation requiring kiosks to register with the state, set daily transaction limits, and display fraud warnings. Delegate Michelle Maldonado (D-Manassas) and Senator Saddam Salim (D-Merrifield) are sponsoring this bill.

Other measures in AARP Virginia’s 2026 legislative agenda include:

• Establishing Home and Community-Based Services Presumptive Eligibility for Medicaid to streamline access to home care.
• Ensuring that nursing homes provide quality care to residents by making sure that they are adequately staffed and facilities that fail their residents are held accountable.
• Codifying the Uniform Health Care Decisions Act, which would make incremental but necessary improvements to Virginia’s outdated advanced care planning laws.
• Updating the Virginia Human Rights Act to equalize age discrimination protections for older workers with other protected classes.
• Helping people in need put food on the table by increasing the minimum monthly Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit from $23 to $50.
• Making it easier for more Virginians to save for retirement by lowering Virginia’s RetirePath program’s employee threshold from 25 to five.
• Preventing evictions by extending the pay-or-quit period for renters from five to 14 days.
• Giving localities the ability to negotiate affordable units for new assisted living developments.
• Ensuring that the affordable housing supply meets demand.

With nearly 1 million members in Virginia, AARP is the largest organization working on behalf of people age 50-plus and their families in the Commonwealth. In recent years, AARP Virginia has successfully fought for protections for older people against financial exploitation, nursing home staffing standards and empowering family caregivers.

To learn more about AARP Virginia, like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/aarpvirginia and follow @AARPVa on X at www.X.com/aarpva.