Education requirements for licensure and continuing education topics in certain health-related occupations modified.

A bill for an act

relating to health occupations; modifying education requirements for licensure

and continuing education topics in certain health-related occupations; amending

Minnesota Statutes 2024, sections 148.907, subdivision 2; 148.911; 148B.31;

148B.33, subdivision 1; 148B.53, subdivision 1; 148B.54, subdivision 2; 148E.055,

subdivision 5.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 148.907, subdivision 2, is amended to read:

Subd. 2.

Requirements for licensure as licensed psychologist.

To become licensed

by the board as a licensed psychologist, an applicant shall comply with the following

requirements:

(1) pass an examination in psychology;

(2) pass a professional responsibility examination on the practice of psychology;

(3) pass any other examinations as required by board rules;

(4) pay nonrefundable fees to the board for applications, processing, testing, renewals,

and materials;

(5) attained the age of majority, be of good moral character, and have no unresolved

disciplinary action or complaints pending in the state of Minnesota or any other jurisdiction;

(6) earned a doctoral degree with a major in psychology
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, with course work that included

at least three credit hours of graduate-level courses related to domestic violence,
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from a

regionally accredited educational institution meeting the standards the board has established

by rule; and

(7) completed at least one full year or the equivalent in part time of postdoctoral

supervised psychological employment in no less than 12 months and no more than 60

months. If the postdoctoral supervised psychological employment goes beyond 60 months,

the board may grant a variance to this requirement.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 148.911, is amended to read:

148.911 CONTINUING EDUCATION.

(a) Upon application for license renewal, a licensee shall provide the board with

satisfactory evidence that the licensee has completed continuing education requirements

established by the board. Continuing education programs shall be approved under section

148.905, subdivision 1
, clause (10). The board shall establish by rule the number of

continuing education training hours required each year and may specify subject or skills

areas that the licensee shall address.

(b) At least four of the required continuing education hours must be on increasing the

knowledge, understanding, self-awareness, and practice skills to competently address the

psychological needs of individuals from diverse socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds.

Topics include but are not limited to:

(1) understanding culture, its functions, and strengths that exist in varied cultures;

(2) understanding clients' cultures and differences among and between cultural groups;

(3) understanding the nature of social diversity and oppression;

(4) understanding cultural humility; and

(5) understanding human diversity, meaning individual client differences that are

associated with the client's cultural group, including race, ethnicity, national origin, religious

affiliation, language, age, gender, gender identity, physical and mental capabilities, sexual

orientation, and socioeconomic status.

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(c) At least two of the required continuing education hours must be in courses related

to domestic violence.

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Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 148B.31, is amended to read:

148B.31 DUTIES OF THE BOARD; CONTINUING EDUCATION.

(a) The board shall:

(1) adopt and enforce rules for marriage and family therapy licensing, which shall be

designed to protect the public;

(2) develop by rule appropriate techniques, including examinations and other methods,

for determining whether applicants and licensees are qualified under sections
148B.29
to

148B.392
;

(3) issue licenses to individuals who are qualified under sections
148B.29
to
148B.392
;

(4) establish and implement procedures designed to assure that licensed marriage and

family therapists will comply with the board's rules;

(5) study and investigate the practice of marriage and family therapy within the state in

order to improve the standards imposed for the licensing of marriage and family therapists

and to improve the procedures and methods used for enforcement of the board's standards;

(6) formulate and implement a code of ethics for all licensed marriage and family

therapists; and

(7) establish continuing education requirements for marriage and family therapists.

(b) At least four of the 40 continuing education training hours required under Minnesota

Rules, part
5300.0320
, subpart 2, must be on increasing the knowledge, understanding,

self-awareness, and practice skills that enable a marriage and family therapist to serve clients

from diverse socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds. Topics include but are not limited

to:

(1) understanding culture, its functions, and strengths that exist in varied cultures;

(2) understanding clients' cultures and differences among and between cultural groups;

(3) understanding the nature of social diversity and oppression; and

(4) understanding cultural humility.

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(c) At least two of the 40 continuing education training hours required under Minnesota

Rules, part 5300.0320, subpart 2, must be on courses related to domestic violence.

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Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 148B.33, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Documentary evidence of qualifications.

An applicant for a license

shall furnish evidence that the applicant:

(1) has attained the age of majority;

(2) is of good moral character;

(3) is a citizen of the United States, or is lawfully entitled to remain and work in the

United States;

(4) has at least two years of supervised postgraduate experience in marriage and family

therapy satisfactory to the board;

(5)(i) has completed a master's or doctoral degree in marriage and family therapy from

a program in a regionally accredited educational institution or from a program accredited

by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education of the

American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy
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, with course work that included

at least three credit hours of graduate-level courses related to domestic violence
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; or (ii) has

completed a master's or doctoral degree from a regionally accredited educational institution

in a related field for which the course work is considered by the board to be equivalent to

that provided in clause (5)(i);

(6) will agree to conduct all professional activities as a licensed marriage and family

therapist in accordance with a code of ethics for marriage and family therapists to be adopted

by the board; and

(7) has passed an examination approved by the board by rule.

Sec. 5.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 148B.53, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

General requirements.

(a) To be licensed as a licensed professional

counselor (LPC), an applicant must provide evidence satisfactory to the board that the

applicant:

(1) is at least 18 years of age;

(2) is of good moral character;

(3) has completed a master's or doctoral degree program in counseling or a related field,

as determined by the board based on the criteria in paragraph (b), that includes a minimum

of 48 semester hours or 72 quarter hours and a supervised field experience of not fewer than

700 hours that is counseling in nature;

(4) has submitted to the board a plan for supervision during the first 2,000 hours of

professional practice or has submitted proof of supervised professional practice that is

acceptable to the board; and

(5) has demonstrated competence in professional counseling by passing the National

Counseling Exam (NCE) administered by the National Board for Certified Counselors, Inc.

(NBCC) or an equivalent national examination as determined by the board, and ethical,

oral, and situational examinations if prescribed by the board.

(b) The degree described in paragraph (a), clause (3), must be from a counseling program

recognized by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Education Programs

(CACREP) or from an institution of higher education that is accredited by a regional

accrediting organization recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation

(CHEA). Specific academic course content and training must include course work in each

of the following subject areas:

(1) the helping relationship, including counseling theory and practice;

(2) human growth and development;

(3) lifestyle and career development;

(4) group dynamics, processes, counseling, and consulting;

(5) assessment and appraisal;

(6) social and cultural foundations, including multicultural issues;

(7) principles of etiology, treatment planning, and prevention of mental and emotional

disorders and dysfunctional behavior;

(8) family counseling and therapy;

(9) research and evaluation;
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and
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(10) professional counseling orientation and ethics
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; and
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(11) domestic violence
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.

(c) To be licensed as a professional counselor, a Minnesota licensed psychologist need

only show evidence of licensure from the Minnesota Board of Psychology and is not required

to comply with paragraph (a) or (b).

Sec. 6.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 148B.54, subdivision 2, is amended to read:

Subd. 2.

Continuing education.

(a) At the completion of the first four years of licensure,

a licensee must provide evidence satisfactory to the board of completion of 12 additional

postgraduate semester credit hours or its equivalent in counseling as determined by the

board, except that no licensee shall be required to show evidence of greater than 60 semester

hours or its equivalent. In addition to completing the requisite graduate coursework, each

licensee shall also complete in the first four years of licensure a minimum of 40 hours of

continuing education activities approved by the board under Minnesota Rules, part
2150.2540
.

Graduate credit hours successfully completed in the first four years of licensure may be

applied to both the graduate credit requirement and to the requirement for 40 hours of

continuing education activities. A licensee may receive 15 continuing education hours per

semester credit hour or ten continuing education hours per quarter credit hour. Thereafter,

at the time of renewal, each licensee shall provide evidence satisfactory to the board that

the licensee has completed during each two-year period at least the equivalent of 40 clock

hours of professional postdegree continuing education in programs approved by the board

and continues to be qualified to practice under sections
148B.50
to
148B.593
.

(b) At least four of the required 40 continuing education clock hours must be on increasing

the knowledge, understanding, self-awareness, and practice skills that enable a licensed

professional counselor and licensed professional clinical counselor to serve clients from

diverse socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds. Topics include but are not limited to:

(1) understanding culture, culture's functions, and strengths that exist in varied cultures;

(2) understanding clients' cultures and differences among and between cultural groups;

(3) understanding the nature of social diversity and oppression; and

(4) understanding cultural humility.

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(c) At least two of the required 40 hours of continuing education clock hours must be

on courses related to domestic violence.

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Sec. 7.

Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 148E.055, subdivision 5, is amended to read:

Subd. 5.

Qualifications for licensure by examination as a licensed independent

clinical social worker (LICSW).

(a) To be licensed as a licensed independent clinical

social worker, an applicant for licensure by examination must provide evidence satisfactory

to the board that the applicant:

(1) has received a graduate degree in social work from a program accredited by the

Council on Social Work Education, the Canadian Association of Schools of Social Work,

or a similar accreditation body that the board designates, or a doctorate in social work from

an accredited university;

(2) has completed 360 clock hours (one semester credit hour = 15 clock hours) in the

following clinical knowledge areas:

(i) 108 clock hours (30 percent) in differential diagnosis and biopsychosocial assessment,

including normative development and psychopathology across the life span;

(ii) 36 clock hours (ten percent) in assessment-based clinical treatment planning with

measurable goals;

(iii) 108 clock hours (30 percent) in clinical intervention methods informed by research

and current standards of practice;

(iv) 18 clock hours (five percent) in evaluation methodologies;

(v) 72 clock hours (20 percent) in social work values and ethics, including cultural

context, diversity, and social policy
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, of which 30 clock hours must be in courses related to

domestic violence
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; and

(vi) 18 clock hours (five percent) in culturally specific clinical assessment and

intervention;

(3) has practiced clinical social work as defined in section
148E.010
, including both

diagnosis and treatment, and has met the supervised practice requirements specified in

sections
148E.100
to
148E.125
;

(4) has passed the clinical or equivalent examination administered by the Association

of Social Work Boards or a similar examination body that the board designates. An

examination is not valid if the applicant took and passed the examination eight or more

years prior to submitting an application for licensure under this section;

(5) has submitted a completed, signed application form that the board has provided. For

electronic applications, a "signed application" means providing an attestation that the board

has specified;

(6) has completed the criminal background check according to section
214.075
and paid

the required fees;

(7) has paid all applicable license fees specified in section
148E.180
; and

(8) has not engaged in conduct that was or would be in violation of the standards of

practice specified in sections
148E.195
to
148E.240
. If the applicant has engaged in conduct

that was or would be in violation of the standards of practice, the board may take action

according to sections
148E.255
to
148E.270
.

(b) The requirement in paragraph (a), clause (2), may be satisfied through:

(1) a graduate degree program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education, the

Canadian Association of Schools of Social Work, or a similar accreditation body that the

board designates; or a doctorate in social work from an accredited university. An academic

institution must certify clinical clock hours in the clinical knowledge areas on a form that

the board has provided to meet this requirement;

(2) graduate coursework from an accredited institution of higher learning. An academic

institution must certify clinical clock hours in the clinical knowledge areas on a form that

the board has provided to meet this requirement; or

(3) up to 120 continuing education hours, which the applicant may complete via

continuing education independent learning as defined in section
148E.010, subdivision 7d
.

The applicant must include documents verifying completion of clinical clock hours in the

clinical knowledge areas to meet this requirement as specified in section
148E.130,

subdivision 11
.