Chapter 19 of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following section:-

Section 26. (a) As used in this section, the following words shall, unless the context requires otherwise, have the following meanings:

“Entity”, a facility or organization that provides mental health or substance use disorder treatment.

“Peer support services”, services, assistance and support based on the principles of mutual respect, responsibility and decision making provided to persons facing mental health conditions or substance use recovery by peer support specialists.

“Peer support specialist”, an individual who is certified by the department to provide peer support services and has lived experience with the process of recovery from a mental health or substance use condition as a consumer of such recovery services, the family member of a consumer of such services or some other individual who has experience with such recovery services.

(b) The department shall develop and maintain a program to offer peer support services to consumers of mental health and substance use disorder support services through entities certified by the department to provide such services.

(c) The department shall develop a peer support services certification program to certify entities seeking approval to offer peer support services. The department shall define the qualifications, practice guidelines and supervision standards for certification of an entity. The department may utilize best practice materials published by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the United States Department of Veterans Affairs and related notable experts in the field as a basis for development of these definitions. An entity seeking approval to offer such services shall submit an application to the department at such time, in such manner and containing such information as the department may reasonably require.

(d) The department shall contract with certified entities to provide peer support services. Such certified entities shall be responsible for the provision and management of peer support services including, but not limited to: (i) recruiting peer support specialists; (ii) training peer support specialists; (iii) supervising and overseeing peer support specialists; and (iv) conducting informational sessions on the functions and qualifications of peer support specialists.

(e) The department may contract with entities that are not certified pursuant to this section at its discretion for the purposes of providing peer support services.

(f) The department shall develop a peer support services specialist certification program to certify individuals seeking certification as peer support specialists. The department shall define the curriculum and core competencies required for certification of a peer support specialist. The department may utilize best practice materials published by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the United States Department of Veterans Affairs and related notable experts in the field as a basis for development of these definitions. An individual seeking certification as a peer support specialist shall submit an application to the department at such time, in such manner and containing such information as the department may reasonably require.

(g) A peer support specialist shall be required to complete peer support training offered by the certified entity that employs the specialist, including any continuing education or recertification requirements established by the department.

(h) Nothing in this section shall prohibit a peer support specialist from receiving payment for their services pursuant to Title XVIII of the Social Security Act.