HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3868        FILED ON: 1/20/2023

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 2271

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Jon Santiago

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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act relative to licensure demographics.

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PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3868        FILED ON: 1/20/2023

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 2271

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)

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An Act relative to licensure demographics.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1. Chapter 13 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 109 the following section:-

Section 110. (a) The department of public health shall annually collect and report on demographic information of applicants for initial licensure and renewal of licensure in professions that provide mental health and substance use disorder treatment. The department shall collect data from the board of registration in social work; board of registration in the allied mental health and human services professions; and board of registration of psychologists. The report shall include, but not be limited to: (i) race; (ii) ethnicity; (iii) language (primary and secondary); (iv) gender identity; (v) county(ies) where applicant intends to practice or currently practices; (vi) school where master’s degree was conferred; (vii) years of prior experience in the field of behavioral health; (viii) states, territories, or other jurisdictions where currently or previously licensed; (ix) application decision; (x) amount of time from application submission to application decision; and (xi) if the application resulted in denial, reason(s) for denial.

(b) Not later than October 31, 2023, and annually thereafter, the department shall report aggregate findings to the joint committee on mental health, substance use and recovery and make findings publicly accessible. Published findings shall be available in searchable, sortable format to allow for the cross-tabulation of statistical variables.