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Minutes for HB2340 - Committee on Health and Human Services
Short Title
Increasing the membership of the behavioral sciences regulatory board, decreasing the years of practice required for reciprocity licensure of certain professions, extending the license period for temporary licenses, establishing new license categories, providing additional continuing education requirements and requiring that clinical social work supervisors be approved by the board.
Minutes Content for Mon, Feb 13, 2023
David Fye, Executive Director, Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board (BSRB), provided testimony in support of HB2340 (Attachment 1). The BSRB is a composite board serving as the licensing agency for most of the state's mental health professionals. A list of the current number of permanent licenses by profession was provided. Mr. Fye noted the items the BSRB requested be in the bill. Mr. Fye began with the lowering of years of practice for reciprocity applicants from 48 months to 12 months. The next item was increasing the time period for temporary licenses from 1 year to 2 years to allow applicant more time to pass the licensing exam. Mr. Fye continued with the creating a pathway for additional time to complete continuing education to allow current licensees up to 3 months to complete their continuing education requirement. Next is a decrease in reinstatement fees and create a new 6 month reinstatement temporary license which would allow individuals who have allowed their licenses to lapse to have an easier path to reinstatement. This will potentially reduce the workflow shortage. Mr. Fye said the next item is creating a new temporary license for graduates of social work programs "in candidacy" for accreditation. This allows students in programs that have not completed the accreditation process to receive temporary licenses until the program is fully accredited. The bill would also create a new temporary addiction counseling license for those students seeking to become licensed as Licensed Addiction Counselors but are short of coursework required for licensure. The next item is to modify continuing education requirements to reduce required hours on diagnosis and treatment and new requirements in cultural diversity. HB2340 would also require social work supervisors to be board approve supervisors. The bill also would add a board member for the Behavioral Analyst professional. The bill would also include changes to create more uniformity between the regulations for the Behavioral Analyst position. There would also be some statutory cleanup included in the bill.
Mr. Fye responded to questions from the committee.
Kyle Kessler, Executive Director, Association of Community Mental Health Centers of Kansas (ACMHCK), provided testimony in support of HB2340 (Attachment 2). The bill will lessen the burden on qualified clinical staff seeking licensure. In addition to the bill's provision for increasing the allowable time frame for temporary licenses, the ACMHCK proposes the creation of a temporary license for social workers who commit to practicing at a licensed community mental health center for two years. The goal is twofold: to allow for new graduates to enter the workforce more quickly and to incentivize service within the community mental health safety net. Mr. Kessler also recommended establishing a 30 business day deadline for processing license applications within five business days for an additional $100 fee.
Becky Fast, Executive Director, National Association of Social Workers -- Kansas Chapter, provided testimony in support of HB2340 (Attachment 3). Kansas is facing a severe shortage of healthcare professionals that is intensifying as more baby boomers retire and the demand for mental health care increases. While supporting the bill, Ms. Fast recommends the committee not adopt the "Board Approved Supervisor" mandate. This adds a new layer of cost, additional liability and jumping through regulatory hoops for a social worker wanting to become clinically trained in Kansas. It was noted that Kansas has a much lower percentage of clinical social workers than neighboring states. Data was provided to the committee.
Dr. Joe Squillace, Program Director, Social Work Department, University of Saint Mary, provided testimony in support of HB2340 (Attachment 4). The bill will authorize the issuance of temporary licenses to applicants who have met all requirements for licensure except for having graduated from a university whose education program is in candidacy for accreditation through the council for Social Work Education (CSWE). This will allow university to actively recruit individuals to their programs. The bill also allows universities to compete with online MSW programs. It is important to note that if graduates of a program in candidacy cannot obtain temporary licensure they will not enroll in the first place.
Kylee Child, MSW Practicum Student, Children's Alliance of Kansas, provided testimony in support of HB2340 (Attachment 5). While in support of the bill, Ms. Child recommended two changes to the bill. First, the elimination of the "Board Approved Supervisor". This adds stress to an already overwhelmed workforce. It limits supervision opportunities in rural areas and it delays time to licensure and enter the workforce.
Monica Kurz, Vice President for Policy & Prevention at Kansas Suicide Prevention Headquarters (KSPHQ) provided testimony in support of HB2340 (Attachment 6). KSPHQ is a suicide prevention resource center and one of four 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline call centers in Kansas. KSPHQ strongly recommends the committee to consider amending the current statute to include diagnostic impressions as an activity which can be used in the pursuit of a clinical level social workers who are available to provide services in Kansas. This would impact her facility by allowing her to keep her workforce so that they would not leave to pursue face-to-face therapy work in pursuit of a higher level of licensure. Ms. Kurz is also concerned with the idea of a board approved supervisor. It is difficult to find a qualified supervisor especially in rural areas. There is also concern with the addition of a DEI requirement in continuing education.
Mitchell Skidmore, LNSW, Private Citizen, provided testimony in support of HB2340 (Attachment 7). While supportive of the bill, Mr. Skidmore has two areas of concern. First, Mr. Skidmore requests the committee to not adopt the new board approved supervisor mandate. It is currently difficult to find a clinical supervisor. The additional requirements for administrative approval and expenses for training would further limit availability. Secondly, there is a concern with the 15 hours of specific coursework. Mr. Skidmore received his MSW degree from the University of Washington, a top ranked MSW program. This creates a significant burden when trying to compare syllabi from various programs with the course requirements for Kansas licensure.
The following provided proponent written only testimony:
Wendy Funk Schrag, Vice President State Government Affairs, Fresenius Medical Care (Attachment 8)
Tim Davis, Ph.D., LSCSW (Attachment 9)
Michelle Richart, Midwest Regional Liaison, United States Department of Defense - State Liaison Office (Attachment 10)
Laura Shaughnessy, Counseling Board Member, Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board (Attachment 11)
