Committee approves H.237 to create prescribing specialty for psychologists

A House Ways & Means committee approved H.237 on a roll call read as "ten-zero-one," advancing a measure to create a prescribing specialty for doctoral-level psychologists that would allow psychologists to prescribe mental-health medications after additional training and certification.

The bill, supported by the Office of Professional Regulation, stacks the new prescribing specialty on top of an existing psychology license rather than replacing it, and authorizes certification and separate specialty fees. "We did write a study about the feasibility and propriety of psychologists prescribing. We did find that the public could be adequately protected if psychologists prescribed if they went through additional training, which is outlined in this bill," said Lauren Hibbert, Deputy Secretary of State and a presenter for the Office of Professional Regulation.

The committee adopted a single amendment to make the bill's fee language consistent across sections by replacing a reference to "the required fee" with "any required fee." Committee staff described the change as a clarification that preserves flexibility about whether and how a specialty fee would be set and collected. Committee members then approved the amendment and, subsequently, the bill as amended.

According to testimony from the Office of Professional Regulation, the specialty is intended to require additional clinical experience, training and an exam beyond the base psychologist license. "I do not anticipate that we would be issuing a specialty in this profession for at least 3 or 4 years, given the length of time that the training takes and the effective date," Hibbert said. The office told the committee it expects to charge a $100 specialty fee for initial issuance and renewals of the prescribing credential when the specialty is implemented: "our intent is that, people who seek the specialty license for prescribing in psychologists would pay the $100 specialty fee that I talked about yesterday with this committee in April," Hibbert said.

The Office of Professional Regulation told the committee it reviewed other states' approaches and existing prescribers and sees the specialty as a way to align medication management with ongoing therapy in a single provider, rather than increasing training requirements above those of other prescribers. The office said some out-of-state practitioners who already hold comparable credentials could be eligible when applications open, but the agency expects most applicants will be in-state providers who pursue the new credential over time.

On the record motions, Representative Wazers Act moved to approve H.237 as amended. The clerk read a roll call with a sequence of members recorded voting in the affirmative; the transcript records the committee passing the amendment and the bill in favor with the tally read as "ten-zero-one." The roll call recorded multiple "Yes" responses; one member was noted as absent during the proceedings.

The bill and amendment do not specify a precise fee amount in all sections; the committee record preserves the Office of Professional Regulation's statement that a $100 specialty fee is anticipated and that fee language was made uniform across bill sections. The committee also noted that specialties for other endorsements are created in statute and that the new prescribing specialty is likewise a statutory addition to the underlying psychology license.

The measure now moves forward from committee with the committee's favorable recommendation; the transcript does not record a floor date or further committee referral. The Office of Professional Regulation indicated it will proceed with rulemaking and implementation planning after the effective date and statutory enactment.