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Counselor Licensure Interstate Portability Endorsement And Reciprocity Plan (CLIPER) 

02-25-2021 11:20

AMHCA Proposes New Portability Process to Increase Access to Mental Health Care Services

ALEXANDRIA, VA. – The American Mental Health Counselors Association (AMHCA) has proposed a new portability arrangement that will guide states and Licensure Counseling Boards to best address the needs of people with mental health conditions and mental health counselors around the country.

The new process called the “Counselor Licensure Interstate Portability Endorsement and Reciprocity” (CLIPER) Plan, will allow states to determine the best approach to:

  • Significantly increase public access to qualified care.
  • Establish minimum standards for safe practice.
  • Reduce administrative burdens for state regulatory boards and licensees.
  • Create consistency in licensure standards across state lines.

For more information about the Counselor Licensure Interstate Portability Endorsement and Reciprocity Plan please go to www.amhca.org/advcacy/portability

The plan integrates two recent licensure portability initiatives developed over the last year to bring about uniformity in portability through endorsement and/or reciprocity developed respectively by the American Association of State Counseling Boards (AASCB) and the Council of State Governments (CSG). Both approaches are mutually compatible.

President of AMHCA, Angele Moss-Baker, said, “Portability of licensure is a need that the counseling profession must address to improve access to care. Taking the steps to improve portability will protect the public and add to the strategies through which licensed professional counselors across the country may provide critical services, while at the same time creating a network of reciprocal relationships across the country. AMHCA will be requesting that state counseling licensure member boards carefully consider the provisions outlined in the AMHCA CLIPER plan.”

“In an era of a mobile workforce, which is increasingly receptive to innovative service delivery such as tele-mental health services, endorsement and reciprocity portability processes are more vital than ever. The time has come to pave a path forward for highly qualified current and future counselors to improve client access to services through portability processes. AMHCA’s new portability plan provides that roadmap,” Moss-Baker added.

AMHCA CEO Joel E. Miller said, “AMHCA’s plan lays out two critically important pathways for clinical mental health counselors to achieve licensure and practice in other states other than their home state. We believe we are entering a new stage in increasing access to mental health services and our approach to portability will accelerate that trend in delivering timely, needed care by improving access to quality services.”

AMHCA’s Interstate Portability Task Force worked closely on the proposal with the AMHCA Board of Directors over the last six months. The task force members said the leadership and collaboration that went into the effort demonstrates the critical importance for portability of licensure through both endorsement and reciprocity.

 


#Portability
#Reciprocity
#Licensure
#StateLicensureBoards
#Advocacy

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