Behavioral Health Legislative Implementation
Several bills affecting behavioral health professionals, facilities, and agencies passed during the 2019 and 2020 legislative session. Bills that require the Department of Health to take action in order to implement are listed below.
- Substitute House Bill 2624 (2020)
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Who this affects
Substance use disorder treatment providers, behavioral health agencies and residential treatment facilities
Summary
- Prevents insurers from requiring prior authorization for payment for admission to residential substance use disorder (SUD) treatment or withdrawal management services.
- The Health Care Authority (authority) is directed to develop an action plan identifying barriers for individuals receiving appropriate SUD treatment.
- It requires the authority and Office of the Insurance Commission to come up with a single state standard set of criteria to define medical necessity for substance use disorder treatment and to define substance use disorder levels of care in Washington.
- The department must collaborate with the authority in exploration of systems to allow withdrawal management facilities to bill for the appropriate levels of care.
- Second Engrossed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5720 (2020)
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Who this affects
Behavioral health agencies certified to provide evaluation and treatment services
Summary
- Updates terms to reflect integration of mental health and substance use disorder
- Changes initial detention time period from 72 hours to 120 hours (effective 1/2021)
- Aligns youth involuntary detention more closely with requirements for adult involuntary detention
- Changes statutes to streamline the process to admit patients for involuntary treatment.
- The Department is required to participate in an Involuntary Treatment Act Workgroup which will be facilitated by the Health Care Authority
- Substitute House Bill 2883 (2020)
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Who this affects
Residential treatment facilities providing services to adolescents
Summary
- Clarifies that parents and guardians may bring their child to any residential treatment facility for family initiated treatment and allows the adolescent to remain in treatment in a residential treatment facility as long as it is medically necessary
- Health Care Authority must develop and operate a data collection and tracking system for youth receiving family-initiated treatment and collaborate with DOH on collecting data from facilities providing family-initiated treatment.
- Substitute House Bill 2426 (2020)
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Who this affects
Psychiatric hospitals, other department-licensed facilities
Summary
- Expands the department's regulatory enforcement tools for psychiatric hospitals
- Provides the department authority to impose stop placements on admissions, civil fines, and conditions on a psychiatric hospital license
- Allows the department to make certain actions (stop placements, conditions on a license, and license suspension) effectively immediately pending a hearing when there is immediate jeopardy to patients
- The department must make technical assistance and training available to psychiatric hospitals on request
- Inspection and investigation reports for health care facilities must be posted on the Web.
- The department must work with stakeholders to make legislative recommendations for consolidation and standardization of licensing and enforcement requirements for all.
- Senate Bill 6641 (2020)
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Who this affects
Sex offender treatment providers
Summary
- Restricts the practice of sex offender treatment to specified behavioral health providers while maintaining access to care by grandfathering in current practitioners
- Expands the number of qualified supervisors, and allows state-run facility and treatment program employees to use their work to towards experience requirements
- The department must create a Sex Offender Treatment Program Advisory Committee to advise on policy and make recommendations to the governor and legislature.
- Engrossed Substitute House Bill 1768
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Who this affects
Substance use disorder professionals, psychologists, clinical social workers, marriage and family therapists, mental health counselors, agency affiliated counselors, behavioral health facilities and agencies.
Summary
- Changes the profession title of chemical dependency professional to substance use disorder professional (SUDP), amends practice definitions, reduces supervision requirements for SUDP who are seeking selected advanced licensure, reduces the amount of time a SUDP must participate in a substance use monitoring program, and changes supervision requirements for the profession.
- Requires the department to create a co-occurring disorder specialist enhancement to be added to a license or registration of a psychologist, clinical social worker, marriage and family therapist, mental health counselor, or agency affiliated counselor with a master's degree or higher, and to coordinate with other state agencies to analyze the effects of creating the new specialist enhancement on the number of providers qualified to provide substance use disorder services.
- Requires the department to update rules for behavioral health agencies to allow people with a co-occurring disorder specialist enhancement to provide substance use disorder services.
- Directs DOH to conduct a sunrise review (PDF) to evaluate the need for the creation of a bachelor's level behavioral health professional credential.
What has been completed so far?
- On August 27, 2019, a series of CR-101 documents (PDF) were submitted for all affected professions. A series of workshops have been held to gather public input in developing draft rule language. See the behavioral health rules in progress page for more information.
- All Department of Health webpages were edited to replace the terms chemical dependency professional and chemical dependency professional trainee with substance use disorder professional and substance use disorder professional trainee.
- The applications for licensure were revised to remove the terms chemical dependency professional and chemical dependency professional trainee with substance use disorder professional and substance use disorder professional trainee. The applications were also revised to include an attestation confirming the applicant has been in recovery from substance use disorder for more than one year. See the revised application on the Substance Use Disorder Professional webpage.
- Draft versions of the sunrise reports have been completed and are available on the Reports and Guidance Documents webpage.
- On March 18, 2020, the CR-102 (PDF) was submitted for all affected professions, and a public hearing date of April 21, 2020, has been scheduled. Please note that in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) public health emergency, the Department of Health will not provide a physical location for this hearing to promote social distancing and the safety of the citizens of Washington. A virtual public hearing, without a physical meeting space, will be held instead. For information on how to participate in this hearing, see our Rules in Progress webpage.
- On April 21, 2020, the public hearing was held virtually and the completed draft language was presented. Comments and suggestions were received and the rules were finalized. The CR-103 (PDF) was submitted for all affected professions and the rules went into effect on July 1, 2020. Updates for individual profession webpages included information regarding the changes from the implementation of this bill and necessary forms and application updates were posted.
- The first educational program for the Co-Occurring Disorder Enhancement is being developed and should begin in mid-September 2020. See the Co-Occurring Disorder Enhancement Education Providers webpage for further information and to sign up for the course (available in late August 2020).
- Second Substitute House Bill 1907 (2019)
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Who this affects
Agency affiliated counselors practicing as a certified peer counselor and behavioral health facilities and agencies
Summary
- Allows for certified peer counselors participating in a substance abuse monitoring program to complete only one year in the program in order to meet the program graduation requirements, and a certified peer counselor with less than one year of recovery would be required to participate in a substance abuse monitoring program only until reaching the one-year mark.
- Behavioral health facilities and agencies that care for vulnerable adults may not automatically deny employment to an applicant for an agency affiliated counselor position practicing as a certified peer counselor provided that at least one year has passed since conviction; that the offense was the result of substance abuse or untreated mental health symptoms; and that the applicant has been in recovery for at least one year.
- The department is tasked with conducting a sunrise review (PDF) to evaluate the need for creating an advanced peer counselor support specialist credential.
What has been completed so far?
- On August 27, 2019, a series of CR-101 documents (PDF) were submitted for all affected professions. A series of workshops have been held to gather public input in developing draft rule language. See the behavioral health rules in progress page for more information.
- The application for licensure as an agency affiliated counselor was revised to include a checkbox to identify if an agency affiliated counselor is employed as a peer counselor. The application has also been revised to include an attestation to confirm that an applicant employed as a peer counselor has been in recovery from substance use disorder for more than one year. See the revised application on the Agency Affiliated Counselor webpage.
- Draft versions of the sunrise reports have been completed and are available on the Reports and Guidance Documents webpage.
- On March 18, 2020, the CR-102 (PDF) was submitted for all affected professions, and a public hearing date of April 21, 2020, has been scheduled. Please note that in response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) public health emergency, the Department of Health will not provide a physical location for this hearing to promote social distancing and the safety of the citizens of Washington. A virtual public hearing, without a physical meeting space, will be held instead. For information on how to participate in this hearing, see our Rules in Progress webpage.
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On April 21, 2020, the public hearing was held virtually and the completed draft language was presented. Comments and suggestions were received and the rules were finalized. The CR-103 (PDF) was submitted for all affected professions and the rules went into effect on July 1, 2020. Updates for individual profession webpages included information regarding the changes from the implementation of this bill and necessary forms and application updates were posted.
- Senate House Bill 5054 (2019)
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Who this affects
Psychologists, social workers, mental health counselors, marriage and family therapists, and substance use disorder professionals, and behavioral health facilities and agencies.
Summary
- Requires the department to establish a reciprocity program and a probationary license for psychologists, social workers, mental health counselors, marriage and family therapists, and substance use disorder professionals who have equivalent scopes of practice in another state, as verified by the department, allowing them to practice in a licensed behavioral health agency during the probationary period as they work toward meeting the requirements for full licensure.
What has been completed so far?
- On August 27, 2019, a series of CR-101 documents (PDF) were submitted for all affected professions. A series of workshops have been held to gather public input in developing draft rule language. See the behavioral health rules in progress page for more information.
- The department has verified the scope of practice equivalency for the “Top 8” states from which the most behavioral health professionals are seeking Washington state licensure, and is continuing this verification process for all 50 states.
- On March 18, 2020, the CR-102 (PDF) was submitted for all affected professions, and a public hearing date of April 21, 2020, has been scheduled. Please note that in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) public health emergency, the Department of Health will not provide a physical location for this hearing to promote social distancing and the safety of the citizens of Washington. A virtual public hearing, without a physical meeting space, will be held instead. For information on how to participate in this hearing, see our Rules in Progress webpage.
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On April 21, 2020, the public hearing was held virtually and the completed draft language was presented. Comments and suggestions were received and the rules were finalized. The CR-103 (PDF) was submitted for all affected professions and the rules went into effect on July 1, 2020. Updates for individual profession webpages included information regarding the changes from the implementation of this bill and necessary forms and application updates were posted.
- Second Substitute House Bill 1394 (2019)
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Who this affects
Behavioral health agencies
Summary
- Requires the department to establish licensing and certification rules for intensive behavioral health treatment facilities and mental health peer respite centers, and encourages improving access to care for people on a 90- or 180-day civil commitment order.
What has been completed so far?
- On July 30, 2019, DOH filed a CR-101 document with the intent to do rulemaking to implement this legislation. A series of workshops have been held to gather public input in developing draft rule language.
- On December 17, 2019 the CR-102 for this project was filed and a public hearing was held on January 22, 2020.
- On March 17, 2020, the CR-103 (PDF) for this project was filed and the effective date of the new rules will be May 1, 2020.
- See the behavioral health rules in progress page for more information.