Originally published: . Volume 3, No. 9. Source pages: 4.
A bill supported by the Louisiana Counselors Association designed to correct problems from last year’s legislation by Senator Mount, was passed favorably out of Senate Health & Welfare Committee. The author, Senator Mills, said the legislation was for “tweaking of what we said last year …”
Cindy Nardini, Licensed Professional Counselor from Alexandria and Government Relations Chair for the Louisiana Counselors Association, testified that some problems had been identified with last years Act 320, legislation that clarified and expanded counselors’ practice.
Nardini explained the new legislation would remove the component of “active care” which she said, “violates the rights of patients with serious mental illness by mandating that they have to be under the active care to be able to be seen and receive services from a licensed professional counselor …”
The new legislation would also extend the collaboration and consultation requirement to all practitioners authorized to prescribe for psychiatric conditions and to physicians from other states.
Nardini noted that Louisiana Counselors Association had contacted all the other mental health professions in the state; the “Louisiana Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, the Louisiana Psychological Association, The Louisiana Medical Psychologists, and the Louisiana Association of Marriage & Family. All have indicated no opposition to the bill.”
The Louisiana Association of Nurse Practitioners submitted cards in support of the legislation.
The Louisiana State Board of Examiners of Psychologists, represented at the meeting by Executive Director Kelly Parker, and the Louisiana Academy of Family Physicians, represented by Dr. James Taylor, Jr., spoke in opposition.
Also speaking in opposition was Dr. C. Mouton, investigator for the state medical board. Those in opposition noted that amendments were being negotiated with Dr. Robert Marier of the medical board, but did not clarify the nature of those amendments.
The bill passed favorably out of the committee following Senator Mills’ agreement that he would not “move the bill forward” until the negotiations regarding amendments were completed with all parties.
This article is part of a historical newspaper archive. Read the original issue for its original layout, photographs and graphics.