Association Executive Directors Community

  • 1.  state CMHC requirements

    Posted 04-07-2021 10:50
    Hello Everyone

    We are trying to change an arbitrary and outdated requirement in our MN state statute for CMHC designation. The current requirement mandates that -

    (b) The provider provides mental health services under the clinical supervision of a mental health professional who is licensed for independent practice at the doctoral level or by a board-certified psychiatrist or a psychiatrist who is eligible for board certification.

    We are trying to change this (just not enough of these providers to go around) so our CMHCs aren't in jeopardy because they cannot comply. And, we are running into big pushback from the guilds.

    Does anyone have state standards that are a better fit you'd be willing to share, please? 

    Thank you All!

    Jinny

    Jin Lee Palen
    Minnesota Association of Community Mental Health Programs|MACMHP
    macmhp.org
    651-233-3502 (c)
     






  • 2.  RE: state CMHC requirements

    Posted 04-07-2021 13:26

    Jin,

     

    In Maryland, regulations required outpatient mental health clinics to employ a medical director who was a psychiatrist, who was required to be on-site for at least 20 hours per week.

     

    We passed several laws since 2019 changing the requirement in several ways: allowing psych NPs to serve as medical directors and allowing medical directors to provide their supervision via telehealth.  Here's the statutory change on the telehealth portion:

    https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/2019RS/chapters_noln/Ch_275_sb0178E.pdf

     

    Our efforts met with opposition from psychiatrists and from the state, but the documented shortage of psychiatrists is so acute that we had several rural clinics in danger in shutting down because of the inability to find a psychiatrist at any cost. Happy to discuss further!

     

     




    Original Message