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Intervention committee: mental-health-only participants need not follow substance-use uniform standards
Summary
The Board of Registered Nursing's Intervention Evaluation Committee was told that participants whose issues are mental-health-only need not follow the board's substance-use uniform standards; committees may accept clinical evaluations, are not required to mandate drug testing or sobriety documentation, and may tailor return-to-work timing.
Loretta Melbby, introduced to the committee as the executive officer for this agenda item, told the Board of Registered Nursing Intervention Evaluation Committee on Feb. 25, 2026, that participants in the board's intervention program with mental-health-only diagnoses are not required to follow the board's uniform standards that apply to substance-use cases.
"The mental health only participant...does not have to follow the uniform standards," Melbby said, adding that committees "can do a clinical evaluation or you can accept their clinical evaluation from their established provider" and that "you do not have to require them to do any...drug testing." She said sobriety documentation and the three-year minimum sobriety expectation tied to substance-use cases do not apply to these participants and that members may use clinical judgment to move participants back to part-time or full-time work sooner when it is safe to do so.
Melbby described alternatives to substance-use recovery group requirements, saying that while NA or AA attendance is not necessarily required for mental-health-only participants, committees may "recommend...a mental health community group" tailored to the participant's needs. She encouraged IEC members to individualize plans and noted the committee may still use the uniform standards when they believe those standards fit a participant's path.
Committee members did not raise questions during the update. Staff reiterated that committee members may follow up with staff (a staff contact referenced as "Jasper" in the meeting) for clarifications that arise after closed-session discussions.
The committee discussed outreach and program management updates earlier in the meeting: staff reported continued collaboration with Premier Health Group, ongoing IEC recruitment, and that 256 outreach materials had been emailed to individual RNs. The committee tentatively scheduled its next IEC meeting for April 22, 2026.
The meeting recessed to closed session "pursuant to Business and Professions Code section 2770.1 and government section code 1116 subdivision C2" to consider intervention program applicants and participants, as recorded in the transcript; the committee reconvened to open session later in the meeting.
What this means: committee members may accept clinical evaluations from a participant's treating provider, are not required to impose drug testing or documented sobriety timelines for mental-health-only participants, and can tailor monitoring and supports (including recommending mental-health-focused community groups) to the clinical needs of those participants. The committee did not adopt a written rule during the open session; the guidance was presented as staff interpretation and practice guidance for evaluating individual participants.
