{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-json\/18.2-502.1.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-text\/18.2-502.1.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-xml\/18.2-502.1.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-html\/18.2-502.1.html"}],"law_id":351075,"edition_id":2,"section_id":351075,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-502.1","catch_line":"Weight loss centers or clinics; disclosure","history":"1988, c. 765.","full_text":"No weight loss center or clinic shall, in its name or advertisements, use the words “physicians” or “doctors” or refer to its clients as “patients” or indicate that “medical teams” are available in its facility unless (i) the facility employs at least one registered nurse full-time and employs or contracts with at least one physician licensed by the Board of Medicine for services or consultation in connection with the facility’s activities; or (ii) the facility is under the full-time supervision of a physician; or (iii) the clinic or program is operated by or in conjunction with a licensed hospital. Any physician affiliated with a weight loss center or clinic for purposes of consultation or supervision shall have primary responsibility for decisions made within the scope of that affiliation relating to the provision of medical services or care to persons using the services of that facility and shall have primary responsibility for medical decisions relating to the evaluation of the appropriateness of the admission of persons to the weight loss program. Any person who violates the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.\n\n","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":1307536,"text":"No weight loss center or clinic shall, in its name or advertisements, use the words “physicians” or “doctors” or refer to its clients as “patients” or indicate that “medical teams” are available in its facility unless (i) the facility employs at least one registered nurse full-time and employs or contracts with at least one physician licensed by the Board of Medicine for services or consultation in connection with the facility’s activities; or (ii) the facility is under the full-time supervision of a physician; or (iii) the clinic or program is operated by or in conjunction with a licensed hospital. Any physician affiliated with a weight loss center or clinic for purposes of consultation or supervision shall have primary responsibility for decisions made within the scope of that affiliation relating to the provision of medical services or care to persons using the services of that facility and shall have primary responsibility for medical decisions relating to the evaluation of the appropriateness of the admission of persons to the weight loss program. Any person who violates the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.","type":"section","prefixes":[""],"prefix":"","entire_prefix":"","prefix_anchor":"","level":1}},"ancestry":[{"id":50216,"edition_id":2,"name":"Miscellaneous Offenses in General","identifier":"3","label":"article","depth":3,"order_by":4,"parent_id":50211,"metadata":{"child_laws":14,"child_structures":0},"date_created":"2026-08-02 02:24:42","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:30:30","permalink":{"id":1391621,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":50216,"identifier":"3","token":"18.2\/12\/3","url":"\/18.2\/12\/3\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":50211,"edition_id":2,"name":"Miscellaneous","identifier":"12","label":"chapter","depth":2,"order_by":11,"parent_id":50131,"metadata":{"child_laws":28,"child_structures":4},"date_created":"2026-08-02 02:24:40","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:30:29","permalink":{"id":1391557,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":50211,"identifier":"12","token":"18.2\/12","url":"\/18.2\/12\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":50131,"edition_id":2,"name":"Crimes and Offenses Generally","identifier":"18.2","label":"title","depth":1,"order_by":52,"parent_id":null,"metadata":{"child_laws":960,"child_structures":94},"date_created":"2026-08-02 02:22:59","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:30:15","permalink":{"id":1391141,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":50131,"identifier":"18.2","token":"18.2","url":"\/18.2\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}}],"structure_contents":[{"id":351077,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-502","catch_line":"Medical referral for profit","url":"\/18.2-502\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-502","metadata":false},{"id":351075,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-502.1","catch_line":"Weight loss centers or clinics; disclosure","url":"\/18.2-502.1\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-502.1","metadata":false},{"id":351076,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-502.2","catch_line":"Warning required for certain medical tests; penalty","url":"\/18.2-502.2\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-502.2","metadata":false},{"id":351078,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-503","catch_line":"Possession or duplication of certain keys","url":"\/18.2-503\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-503","metadata":false},{"id":351080,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-504","catch_line":"Destroying or concealing wills","url":"\/18.2-504\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-504","metadata":false},{"id":351079,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-504.1","catch_line":"Unlawful change of name; punishment","url":"\/18.2-504.1\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-504.1","metadata":false},{"id":351081,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-505","catch_line":"Preparation, etc., of papers to be submitted for academic credit","url":"\/18.2-505\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-505","metadata":false},{"id":351082,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-506","catch_line":"\"Person\" and \"prepare\" defined","url":"\/18.2-506\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-506","metadata":false},{"id":351083,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-507","catch_line":"Injunctions against violation of \u00a7 18.2-505","url":"\/18.2-507\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-507","metadata":false},{"id":351084,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-508","catch_line":"Penalties","url":"\/18.2-508\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-508","metadata":false},{"id":351085,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-509","catch_line":"Employment of lights under certain circumstances","url":"\/18.2-509\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-509","metadata":false},{"id":351094,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-510","catch_line":"Burial or cremation of animals or fowls which have died","url":"\/18.2-510\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-510","metadata":false},{"id":351096,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-511","catch_line":"Sale of certain military grave markers prohibited","url":"\/18.2-511\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-511","metadata":false},{"id":351095,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-511.1","catch_line":"Smoking in proximity to a medical oxygen source in a health care facility; penalty","url":"\/18.2-511.1\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-511.1","metadata":false}],"previous_section":{"id":351077,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-502","catch_line":"Medical referral for profit","url":"\/18.2-502\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-502","metadata":false},"next_section":{"id":351076,"structure_id":50216,"section_number":"18.2-502.2","catch_line":"Warning required for certain medical tests; penalty","url":"\/18.2-502.2\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-502.2","metadata":false},"metadata":false,"official_url":"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/18.2-502.1\/","history_text":"

This law was first created in 1988. The record of its establishment is cataloged in chapter 765 of that year\u2019s edition of \u201cActs of Assembly,\u201d the annual state publication listing all changes made to the Code of Virginia in that year. Unfortunately, the 1988 \u201cActs\u201d aren\u2019t available online.<\/p>","references":false,"refers_to":false,"permalink":{"id":1391627,"object_type":"law","relational_id":351075,"identifier":"18.2-502.1","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-502.1","url":"\/18.2-502.1\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/18.2-502.1\/","token":"18.2\/12\/3\/18.2-502.1","dublin_core":{"Title":"Weight loss centers or clinics; disclosure","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 18.2-502.1","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

No weight loss center or clinic shall, in its name or advertisements, use the words “physicians” or “doctors” or refer to its clients as “patients” or indicate that “medical teams” are available in its facility unless (i) the facility employs at least one registered nurse full-time and employs or contracts<\/span> with at least one physician licensed by the Board of Medicine for services or consultation in connection with the facility’s activities; or (ii) the facility is under the full-time supervision of a physician; or (iii) the clinic or program is operated by or in conjunction with a licensed hospital. Any physician affiliated with a weight loss center or clinic for purposes of consultation or supervision shall have primary responsibility for decisions made within the scope of that affiliation relating to the provision of medical services or care to persons using the services of that facility and shall have primary responsibility for medical decisions relating to the evaluation of the appropriateness of the admission of persons to the weight loss program. Any person who violates the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor<\/span>.<\/p><\/section>","plain_text":" CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\nWEIGHT LOSS CENTERS OR CLINICS; DISCLOSURE (\u00a7 18.2-502.1)\n\nNo weight loss center or clinic shall, in its name or advertisements, use the\nwords “physicians” or “doctors” or refer to its clients\nas “patients” or indicate that “medical teams” are\navailable in its facility unless (i) the facility employs at least one\nregistered nurse full-time and employs or contracts with at least one physician\nlicensed by the Board of Medicine for services or consultation in connection\nwith the facility’s activities; or (ii) the facility is under the\nfull-time supervision of a physician; or (iii) the clinic or program is operated\nby or in conjunction with a licensed hospital. Any physician affiliated with a\nweight loss center or clinic for purposes of consultation or supervision shall\nhave primary responsibility for decisions made within the scope of that\naffiliation relating to the provision of medical services or care to persons\nusing the services of that facility and shall have primary responsibility for\nmedical decisions relating to the evaluation of the appropriateness of the\nadmission of persons to the weight loss program. Any person who violates the\nprovisions of this section shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.\n\nHISTORY: 1988, c. 765.","edition":{"id":2,"name":"2026","slug":"2026","date_created":"2026-07-16 18:40:23","date_modified":"2026-08-02 15:14:36","current":1,"order_by":2,"last_import":"2026-08-02 12:37:30"}}