SB335ENGROSSED
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U4M7DG-2
By Senator Hatcher
RFD: Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development
First Read: 18-May-23
2023 Regular Session
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A BILL
TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
Relating to the Alabama Board of Examiners in
Counseling; to add a new Article 3 to Chapter 8A of Title 34,
Code of Alabama 1975, to create and provide for the operation
of an Alabama Licensed Counselor Wellness Committee and
voluntary treatment program for impaired licensed professional
counselors and associate licensed counselors.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1. A new Article 3, commencing with Section
34-8A-80, is added to Chapter 8A, Title 34 of the Code of
Alabama 1975, to read as follows:
§34-8A-80
For the purposes of this article, the following terms
shall have the following meanings:
(1) IMPAIRED. An inability to practice counseling with
reasonable skill and safety to clients by reason of illness,
inebriation, excessive use of drugs, narcotics, alcohol,
chemicals, or other substances or as a result of any physical
or mental condition.
(2) LICENSEE. A licensed professional counselor or
associate licensed counselor as defined in Section 34-8A-2.
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§34-8A-81
(a) The board shall promote the early identification,
intervention, treatment, and rehabilitation of licensees who
may be impaired.
(b) The board may contract with any nonprofit
corporation or medical professional association for the
purpose of creating, supporting, and maintaining the Alabama
Licensed Counselor Wellness Committee. The committee shall
consist of not less than three nor more than nine licensees.
Committee members shall be appointed by the board for terms of
three years and shall be eligible for reappointment. The
board, for just cause, may remove a committee member before
the expiration of his or her term.
(c) The board may expend any available funds as
necessary to cover the operational expenses of the committee
including, but not limited to, the actual cost of travel,
office overhead, personnel expenses, and compensation of
committee members and staff. Funds expended pursuant to this
subsection are not subject to competitive bid laws.
§34-8A-82
The Alabama Licensed Counselor Wellness Program is
created to develop, maintain, and make available treatment
programs for all licensees who voluntary seek medical
intervention, treatment, and rehabilitation for an impairment.
The program shall operate under the direction of the
committee.
§34-8A-83
The committee may perform all of the following
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functions and duties:
(1) Receive and evaluate reports of suspected
impairment from any source, including referrals from the
board.
(2) Intervene in the case of a verified impairment.
(3) Refer impaired licensees to appropriate treatment
programs.
(4) Monitor the treatment and rehabilitation of
impaired licensees.
(5) Provide post-treatment monitoring and aftercare
support for rehabilitated impaired licensees.
(6) Submit an annual statistical report to the board on
the activities of the committee in a form approved by the
board.
(7) Report to the board any licensee who, in the
opinion of the committee, satisfies all of the following:
a. Is unable to continue in the practice of counseling
with reasonable skill and safety to his or her clients.
b. Appears to be in need of intervention, treatment, or
rehabilitation.
c. Has failed or refused to participate in treatment
programs or rehabilitation as recommended by the committee.
(8) Develop outreach and awareness programs that
promote and publicize the services available through the
wellness program.
(9) Upon request of the board, do any of the following:
a. Develop standards for the evaluation of treatment
facilities to be used by licensees referred by the committee
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for treatment.
b. Evaluate and recommend to the board the approval of
treatment and rehabilitation facilities or programs, or both,
to be used by licensees referred by the committee for
treatment.
(10) Other functions and duties mutually agreed on by
the committee and the board.
§34-8A-84
(a) The wellness program is a confidential non-punitive
alternative to disciplinary sanction for an impaired licensee
who voluntarily seeks medical intervention, evaluation,
treatment, counseling, or rehabilitation for his or her
impairment.
(b)(1) A licensee who does all of the following may not
be reported by the committee to the board for violating
Section 34-8A-24:
a. Voluntarily commits to the committee for treatment
of an impairment.
b. Successfully completes the recommended course of
treatment and therapy.
c. Abides by the terms and conditions of any
recommended aftercare agreements for the period of time
specified.
d. Continues the private practice of counseling with
reasonable skill and safety and free from impairment.
(2) A licensee who completes treatment or
rehabilitation, or both, and aftercare as recommended by the
committee shall truthfully respond to all inquiries by
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employers, state or federal licensing or regulatory agencies,
credentialing bodies, courts, malpractice insurance carriers,
and specialty boards concerning his or her treatment,
rehabilitation, and aftercare, and the committee shall
advocate on behalf of and provide support for the licensee
before those entities.
(3) A licensee who knows or has reason to know that
another licensee is impaired, shall report that information to
the committee. A report to the committee shall be deemed to be
a report to the board for the purpose of mandatory reporting
requirements.
(4) If the board has reasonable cause to believe that a
licensee is impaired, the board may order an evaluation of the
licensee by an appropriate medical professional to determine
if an impairment exists. The committee shall report its
findings to the board.
(5) If the board, as a result of an investigation or an
evaluation, finds that a licensee may be impaired, the board
may administratively report that finding to the committee and
request that the licensee be evaluated by an appropriate
medical professional. The board shall provide information to
the committee as necessary to perform an intervention and
evaluation. The committee shall report its findings and
recommendations to the board and provide follow-up reports
upon request of the board.
(6) The committee shall report to the board the name of
any licensee who the committee believes may be impaired and
who also satisfies any of the following:
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a. Has failed or refused to follow the recommendations
of the committee for evaluation, treatment, or rehabilitation.
b. Has discontinued an evaluation, treatment, or
rehabilitation against medical advice.
c. Has failed to abide by the terms and conditions of
an aftercare agreement with the committee.
d. Whose continuation in practice, in the opinion of
the committee, constitutes a threat to the safety of his or
her clients or to the public.
(7) Any report to the board made by the committee
pursuant to this section may include reports, evaluations,
treatment records, medical records, documents, or other
information relevant to the licensee, unless specifically
prohibited by federal law, and notwithstanding any state law
that provides the reports, evaluations, treatment records,
medical records, documents, or other information are
confidential or privileged. All reports, evaluations,
treatment records, medical records, documents, or other
information received by the board in a committee report
submitted pursuant to this subsection is privileged and
confidential and shall not be a public record nor available
for court subpoena or for discovery proceedings, unless the
impaired licensee's impairment was the conduct at issue in a
civil or criminal action and the court determines through an
in camera review that the evidence of the licensee's
impairment is substantially more probative than prejudicial.
Such information may be used by the board in the course of its
investigations and may be introduced as evidence in
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administrative hearings conducted by the board. Records
otherwise available from original sources may not be construed
as immune from discovery or use in any civil proceeding merely
because the records were presented during a proceeding of the
committee.
(8) A licensee may be disciplined or sanctioned by the
board with a voluntary or involuntary restriction on his or
her license to practice counseling, which requires the
licensee to enter into and comply with an aftercare agreement
proposed by the committee. The committee shall report to the
board any violation or deviation by the licensee of the terms
and conditions of his or her aftercare agreement.
§34-8A-85
(a) All information, interviews, reports, statements,
memorandum, or other documents furnished to or produced by the
committee and any findings, conclusions, interventions,
treatment, or rehabilitation, and related actions of the
committee are privileged and confidential and not subject to
subpoena or discovery, unless the impaired licensee's
impairment was the conduct at issue in a civil or criminal
action and the court determines through an in camera review
that the evidence of the licensee's impairment is
substantially more probative than prejudicial.
(b) All records and proceedings of the committee are
confidential and may only be used by the committee and the
members of the committee for the specific purposes of the
committee.
(c) The committee may only disclose wellness,
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treatment, or disciplinary information relating to an impaired
licensee in the following circumstances:
(1) When essential to further the intervention,
treatment, counseling, or rehabilitation needs of the
licensee, and then, only to those individuals or entities with
a need to know.
(2) When the release is authorized in writing by the
licensee.
(3) When the committee is required to make a report to
the board.
(4) When ordered by a court after an in camera review
that the evidence of an impaired licensee's impairment was the
conduct at issue in a civil or criminal action and the
evidence is substantially more probative than prejudicial.
§34-8A-86
Any licensee appointed to serve as a member of the
committee and any auxiliary personnel, consultants, attorneys,
or other volunteers or employees of the committee taking any
action authorized by this article, engaging in the performance
of any functions or duties on behalf of the committee, or
participating in any administrative or judicial proceeding
resulting therefrom, in the performance and operation thereof,
shall be immune from any liability, civil or criminal, that
might otherwise be incurred or imposed while acting within the
scope of his or her duties as a committee member. Any
nonprofit corporation or medical professional association or
state or county medical association that contracts with or
receives funds from the board for the creation, support, and
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operation of the committee, in so doing, shall be immune from
any liability, civil or criminal, that might otherwise be
incurred or imposed while acting within the scope of his or
her duties as a committee member.
Section 2. This act shall become effective on the first
day of the third month following its passage and approval by
the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.
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Senate
Read for the first time and referred
to the Senate committee on Fiscal
Responsibility and Economic
Development
................18-May-23
Read for the second time and placed
on the calendar:
1 amendment
................24-May-23
Read for the third time and passed
as amended
Yeas 30
Nays 0
Abstains 0
................25-May-23
Patrick Harris,
Secretary.
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