Attention: Upcoming CO Bill on Minors and Mental Health Consent

Greetings to all Rocky Mountain Family Network and Colorado Family TEAM Members:

In January the 2022 Legislative Session will begin. A primary legislative concern will be including MFTCs in CRS 12-245-203.5.

The Colorado Psychological Association is running a clean up bill on the age of consent for minors. Their bill includes language I suggested on Marriage and Family Therapy Candidates being added to the list of qualified clinicians and clarifying parental consent for treatment in relationship to orders from court of competent jurisdiction.

A future legislative goal will be training requirements for so-called "Family Reunification Therapy". Too many mental health professionals are working with families without appropriate training in family systems, high conflict divorce, and child development. I am hopeful that additional training will result in better clinical service to clients, less triangulation complaints against clinicians to DORA regulatory boards, and more economic opportunities for MFTs and MFTCs in doing actual systemic and relational therapy.

Please contact me at 720-253-4831 (my cell) and Leslieinstitute@cs.com with any comments or questions. Please use this Colorado General Assembly link: http://leg.colorado.gov/find-my-legislator to find out who your State Senator is and who your State Representative is. We will need you to start developing a relationship with both for future legislative efforts. The AAMFT Family TEAM website has videos on how to talk to your Legislator. I can also dialogue with you about some ideas.

Sincerely,

Dr. Reo Leslie, Jr., LMFT, LPC, LAC, MAC, RPT-S, ACS

Dr. Reo Leslie
Introducing the New Family TEAM Leader for Colorado

Hello to all seventy- three Colorado Family TEAM members-

I asked the AAMFT National Family TEAM to help introduce me. I am, Dr. Reo Leslie, the new Colorado Family TEAM Leader appointed this month. I tried to anticipate some questions.

Who Am I?: I am the CEO of The Colorado School for Family Therapy founded in 1995. I have been an AAMFT Approved Supervisor since 1996. I am a LMFT in Colorado, Hawaii, and Louisiana, and a LPC and a LAC in Colorado. Among other things I have been Team Clinician to the Denver Broncos and taught MFT on the Masters and Doctoral level at Argosy University. I am a three time Gubernatorial appointee... so I am familiar with Executive Branch and Legislative Branch politics.

What Happened to Barbara Ford and Dr. Krista Speicher?: Barbara served faithfully for over a year and a half in this position. She was succeeded by Dr. Krista Speicher who guided the Family TEAM through the COVID 19 Pandemic, the Sunset Review in the 2020 Colorado General Assembly and the 2021 Legislative Session. I volunteered to follow their leadership example a few weeks ago.

What is My Legislative Experience?: Since Governor Ritter appointed me as the Mental Health Representative on the State of Colorado Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice (CCJJ) in 2007 I been involved in drafting legislation for the Colorado General Assembly. I have authored several bills related to the Mental Health Profession. Two bills I drafted, HB14-1271 in 2014 and HB17-1011 in 2017, were passed unanimously by both houses of the Colorado State Legislature. On January 22, 2018 I received an award from the Speaker of the Colorado House, the President of the Colorado Senate, and the Black Democratic Caucus for my legislative and community service. Also during 2018, along with my wife, Dr. Evelyn Leslie, I helped rewrite and update the Colorado Mental Health Practice Act (CRS 12-245) during the Title 12 Recodification Project shepherded by the Office of Legislative Affairs at the State Capital. This month I was asked by Senator Bennett and Senator Hickenlooper to serve on an interview panel for candidates for appointment to US Military Academies on November 20, 2021.

What Do I Plan To Do? Use my experience and the relationships I have built with legislators on both sides of the aisle to promote the interests of MFTs and advance the legislative agenda of the AAMFT every annual session. I also plan to train Colorado Family TEAM members to do the same.

What Are My Particular Concerns For Now? They are:

1.) Protect the MFT license and the MFT Board: DORA proposed creating one single board for all six regulated mental health professions three years ago.
2.) Modify 12-245-203.5 to include MFTCs: I have already suggested revised language to a clean up bill proposed by the Colorado Psychology Association. I was contacted for advise on the draft bill prior to becoming your Colorado Team Leader.
3.) Work with our Lobbyist to remain vigilant on all legislative matters relevant to the practice of MFT.
4.) Establish free training sessions on political and legislative issues for Colorado Family TEAM members for professional development, continuing education, and promoting the AAMFT legislative goals.

What can you do? Five things:

1.) Adopt your State Senator and State Representative (regardless of party) and develop a relationship with both ASAP.
2.) Testify (probably virtually) about relevant legislation during the 2022 Colorado General Assembly session (January to May)
3.) Support Colorado Family TEAM efforts to protect our MFT license and our right to practice as MFTs and MFTCs.
4.) Help recruit more MFTs and MFTCs to the Colorado Family Team.
5.) Attend virtual DORA MFT Board meetings held quarterly to see how our profession is regulated.

Please feel free to contact me by phone (720-253-4831) or email (Leslieinstitute@cs.com) with any ideas, questions or concerns. Like Barbara and Dr. Speicher before me I have an open door policy. Take care and continue your systemic, relational, political, and legislative thinking.

Dr. Reo LeslieColorado
Colorado Advocacy Goals and Priorities for 2021 Session

Greetings Family TEAM Members!

I hope this email finds you well. As we approach the 2021 Legislative Session, it is important to consider our MFT Advocacy goals for the coming year. Therefore, I am writing to check in and see if you have some feedback or goals you feel our MFT Community should focus on next session. Additionally, we are in the process of applying to AAMFT for lobbyist funding for this next year. I have attached the AAMFT State MFT Advocacy Goals document for your reference. It lists those goals AAMFT considers to be Foundational vs Secondary.  Please take this into consideration when formulating any priorities or goals.

If you could let me know your thoughts and feedback as soon as possible, that would be greatly appreciated. We will be preparing a Zoom call in the coming weeks to talk more openly about goals and what you all are seeing as priorities for Colorado MFTs.

Please be advised this is a request for feedback around legislative issues, not board rule changes. Those are in a different sphere, so to speak. And we are monitoring that situation closely as well as hoping to collaborate with RMFTN on sending organized MFT feedback.

All the best,
--

Krista D. Speicher, DMFT, LMFT, LSW, CAC III,

Jolene Harrelson
August 2020 Update from Family Team: Outcomes from Sunset Review

2020 Sunset Review of Mental Health Reviews

As you know, we were right in the middle of our review process and working with legislatures and DORA on our goals when we were forced to step back due to COVID-19. Regardless of those setbacks, the Sunset was very productive and collaborative as we worked together with the other mental health professions to bring about some important updates.

To see the draft bill (HB 20-1206) in its entirety and download other important resources, click on the link below to the MFT Examiners Board homepage on the DORA website: https://dpo.colorado.gov/MarriageFamilyTherapy and click on Public Notices. Here you will find the following:
·      Copy of the Notice, HB20-1206, HB20-1326, and SB20-102.
·      Copy of the draft rules for the mental health boards
·      Watch/listen to the webinar stakeholder meeting regarding the draft rules which took place on July 30, 2020.

You can also click on New Legislation for even more resources from the 2020 Legislative Session.

What’s in the new legislation?

The new bill being put forward is HB20-1206. You can access the bill summary here. I’ve included all of the information in bullet format about the changes and updates made as a result of the sunset process this year. Some of these of particular interest to MFTs include:

  • Registered Psychotherapists

    • Title change from Registered Psychotherapist to Unlicensed Psychotherapist

    • Cessation of all new Unlicensed Psychotherapist applications (effective immediately)

    • If already hold Unlicensed Psychotherapist, will be allowed to keep that registration and continue to practice

  • Clarifies Clinical Supervision vs Administrative Supervision for mental health professionals (pg. 81 of the bill)

  • Modifies mandatory disclosure requirements to include requiring that mental health professionals disclose to clients that medical records may not be maintained after seven years – example disclosure statement is located on DORA website

  • Expands the Title Use Protection for Mental Health Professionals (pg. 10 of the bill), specific to MFT are listed below:

    • Marriage and family therapist

    • LMFT

    • MFT

    • Marriage and Family Therapist Candidate

    • MFT Candidate

    • MFTC

  • Clarifies the mental health regulatory board’s ability to suspend a mental health professional's license, certification, or registration for failure to comply with a board-ordered mental or physical health examination

  • Repeals the requirement that members of mental health boards be United States citizens

  • Clarifies that mental health professionals may administer opiate antagonists and are provided immunity when administering opiate antagonists in certain circumstances

  • Clarifies that exemptions from Article 245 include: students practicing in a school program and a professional practicing auricular acudetox in accordance with 12-245-233, C.R.S.

Regarding MFTC’s and the Four Year Window for Hours

Another issue that I would like to address is the concern with what happens to candidates if they cannot get their hours completed within the 4 year time frame. With the removal of the Unlicensed Psychotherapists registration this does not provide an additional option for professionals to continue to work on their hours. This has been brought to DORA’s attention not only by myself, but the other mental health professionals as well. During the stakeholder meeting the other week, many professionals had this same concern. DORA will be taking this to the boards and hopefully some adjustments can be made. I am hopeful they have heard our collective concerns on this matter and that the mental health boards will be able to adjust accordingly.

If you have questions, reach out!

If you have additional questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out. While I know this is the case for many people right now, due to COVID-19, response time might be delayed. Thank you for your patience.

Upcoming Issue: Sunset Review

Hi there, TEAM!

There is an immediate issue before Colorado MFTs: the 2020 Sunset Review of Colorado’s Mental Health Practice Act.

A sunset review is a comprehensive analysis by the legislature of the statutes to determine, among other things, whether state regulation of the various mental health professions should continue. Sunset reviews are also an opportunity to change various sections of the statutes, if necessary.

We have the opportunity to recommend changes and strengthen the case for our license over the next year. Krista Speicher, who served as the final president of COAMFT, has been participating in DORA's review of the statute over this past year. AAMFT has agreed to chip in to hire a lobbyist to assist us in this process.

What do we need from you? Colorado’s Family TEAM is gathering of group of Colorado LMFTs and Candidates to identify and prioritize areas we identify as needing tweaking in current statute. We need your input!

If you want to be involved, send Colorado’s Family TEAM leadership a message by clicking here!

You can also learn more about the Sunset Review process, at the following website: https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/dora-oprrr/coprrr-sunset-reviews.

Jolene Harrelson
Current Legislative Issues

National Legislation

AAMFT is calling on members to begin working in their respective states to gather support for bipartisan legislation that would include licensed marriage and family therapists, as well as licensed mental health counselors, as Medicare eligible providers. Legislation has just been introduced in both the US House of Representatives and US Senate. The Mental Health Access Improvement Act of 2019, introduced in the House as H.R. 945 by Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA) and Rep. John Katko (R-NY) and in the Senate as S. 286 by Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) and Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), would add MFTs and MHCs as independent Medicare Part B practitioners.

Colorado Legislation

Several bills have been flagged to date concerning Marriage and Family practice in Colorado. HB1129 would ban conversion therapy. COAMFT supported this in the past though it did not pass last year. HB1120 lowers the age of consent to 12 year old children. It was introduced last year but did not pass. SB 010 is a revision and update of the current law authorizing use of marijuana funds for school behavioral health. The revised bill will allow Department of Education, to grant funds to school districts to contract with behavioral health providers to provide therapy in schools.

Stay Informed!

Please watch for communications, within the next several weeks inviting you to participate on-line or in-person in a focus group for the framing of a state-wide survey. Also, encourage your colleagues to sign-up for Family TEAM membership to assure that all who have an interest in advocacy for our profession are receiving updates and materials throughout this important next year. Finally, please consider adopting one or more advocacy projects. Although we will have a lobbyist for the Sunset Review, we all need to be involved in advocating for or against each piece of legislation we take a position on. Perhaps, more urgently, we need to be meeting with our congressional delegation soliciting co-sponsors for federal legislation.

Jolene Harrelson