30. PSYPACT Your Top Questions Answered

PSYPACT Your Top Questions Answered === Meghan Beier, PhD: [00:00:00] Hello everyone. I am Dr. Meghan Beier. Thank you for joining me today. In this online course, I'll be addressing some of the top questions you might have about PSYPACT. In fact, many of the questions and scenarios that are going be posed in the course today were inspired by actual questions asked by psychologists. Meghan Beier, PhD: We're going start with the basics. I'll answer some questions about, um, definitions, and then we're gonna build more complex and nuanced questions. Meghan Beier, PhD: Of note before we even get started. We're not gonna be able to cover every topic that's under the umbrella of PSYPACT today, and I'll note what wasn't covered in the presentation at the end. And what's gonna be coming in future courses. Meghan Beier, PhD: So let's dive into an overview of what we will cover today. First, we're gonna tackle the basics of PSYPACT, what it [00:01:00] is, and common definitions. Next we're gonna talk about jurisdiction. Who has jurisdiction and where. So for example, your state of license, do they have jurisdiction or does PSYPACT have jurisdiction over different cases? So we're gonna go through some case scenarios there. Meghan Beier, PhD: Then we're gonna move to logistics. How does PSYPACT actually work in practice? And we're gonna particularly focus on specifics of telepsychology and also temporary in-person sessions. Meghan Beier, PhD: Finally, we're gonna touch very briefly on practice and travel considerations, including a brief introduction about what you need to know when you are not in your home state. Meghan Beier, PhD: Before we get into the nitty gritty here, I just wanted to share a little bit about myself so that you know who is teaching this course. My name is Dr. Meghan Beier. I'm a psychologist, a clinical psychologist at Rowan Center for Behavioral Medicine. And I'm also a faculty member at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine [00:02:00] in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Meghan Beier, PhD: A few years ago, I also founded Find Empathy, a platform dedicated to creating educational resources just like this one for mental health professionals. Through Find Empathy I also host a podcast, which some of you may be listening to this course on, um, where I not only do presentations like this one, but I also have conversations with researchers, clinicians, as well as individuals with lived experiences largely in two areas, technology and psychology and medical psychology. Meghan Beier, PhD: I just also want to be clear and transparent and reiterate that I am the owner of Find Empathy. This platform isn't just a professional endeavor, meant to make money, but it's a passion project that is run almost entirely by me and it was really inspired by the patients that I worked with. Meghan Beier, PhD: If you want a little bit more background in terms of why I started Find Empathy, check out [00:03:00] the intro episode in the podcast. Meghan Beier, PhD: What is PSYPACT? So this might seem like a really obvious question. If you're taking a course on PSYPACT, you probably already know what it is, but let's just define it. I think it is really helpful to start with the most basic question, what is PSYPACT? PSYPACT is an interstate compact, which is essentially an agreement that simplifies the process for licensed psychologists to be able to provide services across state lines. This is particularly beneficial for those practicing telepsychology. Or those who wish to conduct temporary in-person sessions without the hassle of obtaining a full license in each state. I would say hassle and cost, right? 'cause that would be extremely expensive. The benefit here is that it increases access to care for many people around the US who may live in rural areas, may be looking for [00:04:00] specialty providers, may need someone virtual due to long wait lists in their area or for many other reasons. Meghan Beier, PhD: Many of you who are listening have your own special niche that patients might be looking for and don't have access to in their community. Think of this as kind of a passport for your practice. Meghan Beier, PhD: It allows you to extend your reach and be able to help more people. Yeah, if you want more detailed information, for example, all the legislation that is being used, uh, in each of the different states, you can go to psypact.gov. Meghan Beier, PhD: Okay. A few more definitions that I think are really helpful. First E. Passport. E. Passport is your credential that shows that you have met all educational exam and background requirements. Essentially, it acts as your ticket for practicing telepsychology across state lines. Meghan Beier, PhD: Next we have the Authority to Practice Interjurisdictional Telepsychology [00:05:00] or APIT. This allows you to actually deliver telepsychology services to clients in other states, that are part of PSYPACT, without needing the separate license for each state. Meghan Beier, PhD: So this is important. We'll actually come back to this in a case or scenario in a little bit, but the E. Passport shows you've met all those requirements, then you take that E. Passport and you show it to get your APIT. The Authority to practice says yes, okay, now that you've met the requirements, now you are allowed to start providing services. Meghan Beier, PhD: In other words, this is like the conductor that looks at your ticket, the E. Passport, and says, yep, you can be on this train. Meghan Beier, PhD: Lastly, there's the temporary authorization to practice or TAP, this allows you to engage in temporary, in-person practice in other PSYPACT states. It's important to note that this is only for a limited number of days, specifically, 30 days per year, per state, so planning is definitely key. Meghan Beier, PhD: [00:06:00] I mentioned that the E. Passport shows that you've met all the requirements that are necessary. This slide is going to tell us what requirements are actually needed to practice temporary psychology or to get your E. Passport. Meghan Beier, PhD: For telepsychology, that APIT uh, you need to be licensed in a PSYPACT state. Meghan Beier, PhD: You need to obtain your E. Passport certificate from ASPBB, and you need to apply to the PSYPACT Commission for an authority to practice interjurisdictional telepsychology. Meghan Beier, PhD: For temporary practice, it's pretty similar. You need to be licensed in a PSYPACT state. You must obtain your IPC or inter-jurisdictional practice certificate from ASPBB, and you have to apply to the PSYPACT Commission for temporary authorization to practice. Meghan Beier, PhD: There are a few additional specifics under the licensing bullet, [00:07:00] including needing to have passed your EPPP and having to send your doctoral transcripts for review. You can check PSYPRO's website for more details. Meghan Beier, PhD: How do I apply? It might seem odd that I'm putting in, how do I apply into a continuing education presentation, but we actually need 3 CEs of telepsychology courses to even apply. So I don't want to make the assumption that everyone already knows how to do the application procedure. So first you visit psypro.org, you create a profile or you log in. Meghan Beier, PhD: Once logged in, look to the right of your screen. There will be something that says, select an activity. And if you look at the picture on this slide, you'll see at the top on the right, select an activity. Meghan Beier, PhD: Below that, for mine it says renewal E. Passport, in red, and then you're gonna want look at the red arrow. Meghan Beier, PhD: If this is your first time [00:08:00] applying, it will say, E. Passport, APIT. For renewals, it will say renewal dash E. Passport, APIT. Meghan Beier, PhD: Once an application is started, your application checklist will appear on the homepage, select edit to access the checklist and complete the required sections. Meghan Beier, PhD: If you'd like a full step-by-step instructions with pictures, there's a web link that I have put into the slide deck here. Um, and if you're listening via audio, the slide deck is gonna be available in PDF form. Meghan Beier, PhD: If you go to the course, landing page and you download that PDF, you'll be able to click on that link in order to see step by and step instructions for how to apply. Meghan Beier, PhD: I am also gonna put in a quick little video in the renewal section of this talk, which basically is very similar to the initial application, so you can kind of follow along that [00:09:00] video if you are, uh, looking for how to apply initially. Meghan Beier, PhD: Let's move on to the logistics section. Meghan Beier, PhD: There's been a few questions about how to contact PSYPACT, when there are questions that come up. In the slide deck I've put a picture of different PSYPACT staff, as well as their phone numbers and email addresses where they can be. Where they can be contacted. Meghan Beier, PhD: I've also put in a link that is going to probably be a little bit better for you to go to because there might be turnover in staff or there might be changes in terms of the contact information. So again, I'm gonna have a link that you can go to that has the most updated contact information for PSYPACT staff. Meghan Beier, PhD: If you contact them with any questions, they usually get back to you pretty quickly. Uh, I made a mistake on my most recent renewal application and I emailed them and within [00:10:00] 24 hours they had gotten back to me and helped me fix the mistake. So using the email addresses that are linked here is very effective. Meghan Beier, PhD: Here's our first provider question. Just make a note here. I took a whole bunch of questions over the course of a year. I put them together and I made composite questions that covered a lot of different topics. I did not take any questions word for word. Meghan Beier, PhD: So if this sounds semi-familiar to a question that you've put somewhere out there in the world it's coincidence and, not something that I copied and pasted off of any sort of email listserv, etc. Meghan Beier, PhD: So the first provider question is, can I change the email address associated with my PSYPACT or PSYPRO login if I lose access to the email I used originally? Meghan Beier, PhD: So this might happen if you are part of a private practice and you move to a different one, or you start your own practice. Um, if you're a part [00:11:00] of an academic center and you move to a different job and um, you no longer have access to that old email address. And the answer is yes. You can change the email address associated with your account. Meghan Beier, PhD: It's recommended that you reach out to ASPPB or PSYPACT staff for assistance with this change, you can use two different contact email addresses [email protected] or [email protected]. Again, these are available in the PDF download. Meghan Beier, PhD: Second provider question , how do I list my PSYPACT authority to practice in an email signature, on a website, CV, etc.? Meghan Beier, PhD: There is actually a PSYPACT statement on this question. You may include the following language, authority to practice interjurisdictional telepsychology, APIT, and or temporary authorization to practice.[00:12:00] Meghan Beier, PhD: You can include your APIT or your TAP number TAP number. You can include the date that it was issued your authority to practice was issued. You can use the words "granted by" the PSYPACT Commission, or you can provide an explanation of what "authorization" means. There is language for this explanation available in the practice related FAQs, or frequently asked questions on the PSYPACT website. Meghan Beier, PhD: The main thing here is that you don't want to indicate that the authorization implies any additional license, credential or educational level. You don't want list the authorization, for example, directly after your name as if this might imply some additional academic degree that you had done some additional certification or qualification. Meghan Beier, PhD: They really just wanted to show that yes, you have this authority to practice [00:13:00] across state lines, but you don't have any higher education than someone that doesn't have this authority to practice against across state lines. Meghan Beier, PhD: Is there a directory for PSYPACT providers and how do I sign up for it? Meghan Beier, PhD: There are actually two directories. Meghan Beier, PhD: One is the PSYPACT Spotlight Directory, which is a searchable database for the public, and that can be found at directory.psypact.gov. Meghan Beier, PhD: There's a second one, which is a verification of PSYPACT Authorizations, which is verifypsypact.org. Meghan Beier, PhD: This is a YouTube video put together by PSYPACT that shows you how to set up your Spotlight directory profile so that you can be found by members of the public. Meghan Beier, PhD: okay. Renewal. Meghan Beier, PhD: We're actually gonna spend a little bit of time on renewal because I have seen the most questions about how to renew. Meghan Beier, PhD: The [00:14:00] website, um, as maybe you found already can be a little bit confusing. So let me go into our scenario here. Dr. Lopez receives an email reminder to renew her APIT, her authority to practice and E. Passport. The renewal website feels confusing and hard to navigate. She wonders a couple of things. Meghan Beier, PhD: Do I need new CE hours in Telepsychology? I mean, I did those three hours last year to apply. What are the renewal fees? Where do I upload my documents? Can I still practice if my renewal is pending? Meghan Beier, PhD: So some quick answers and then I'll dive into more deeper answers to each of those questions that Dr. Lopez was asking. Meghan Beier, PhD: Yes, you need three more CEs. There is a CE requirement and annual CE re requirement, three hours of telepsychology [00:15:00] CE required at each renewal period. The fees are $400 for the E. Passport and $200 for APIT paid via PSYPRO. Just of note, this information is from September of 2025, and it's very possible that these fees may change over time. Meghan Beier, PhD: So if you're watching this in 2026 or 2027. Uh, those fees may be a little bit higher. There is actually a two step process for renewing and actually also applying. I think this is really important 'cause sometimes this gets confusing or lost. First you need to renew your E. Passport or your IPC. To do that, you log into psypro.org. Select renewal or E. Passport, APIT, and follow the checklist. Meghan Beier, PhD: After you do that, you're going to submit the application, and within [00:16:00] a couple of weeks you're going to get an email back from psypro saying, Hey, your E. Passport was approved, and then you want complete the corresponding PSYPACT Renewal or APIT renewal. Meghan Beier, PhD: So this is going to take your E. Passport and it's gonna say, Hey I've been once again approved and shown that I have the credentials required. And so now you're getting the official stamp of approval that yes, you can practice across state lines. So you need to do both of those steps. Meghan Beier, PhD: For the CE requirement, I've mentioned this previously, but let me go into a little bit more detail. You must complete three hours of continuing education, each renewal period. The CE must be relevant to the use of technology in psychology. Some examples of this are things like telepsychology tools, ethics of telepsychology, ethics of certain tools, data [00:17:00] security, virtual care. Meghan Beier, PhD: So the acceptable continuing education includes academic courses that can be at a local university or at university's online website. Meghan Beier, PhD: It can be an approved sponsor. So that can either be live or on demand. For example, APA has approved Find Empathy to provide CEs. So we are an APA approved sponsor. So CEs provided by Find Empathy would fit under this category. And there's many, many other organizations that are approved sponsors as well. Meghan Beier, PhD: You can also do self-directed learning. Things like articles, webinars, or videos. But since they are not an academic course or an approved sponsor, you must complete an ASPBB verification form to ensure that that actually meets the criteria. Meghan Beier, PhD: You can also do specialized technology training. Again, you want. Uh, check with ASPBB and, and [00:18:00] complete this verification form in order to ensure that that specialized technology training actually meets the criteria required. Meghan Beier, PhD: Special note here, the final approval of relevance is determined by ASPBB mobility committee. Meghan Beier, PhD: So not every course that is in technology and psychology is going to say that it's approved for PSYPACT renewal or E. Passport renewal. Uh, you have to find courses that have that specialization and apply them for the CE requirement. If you're looking at a course and you think it might apply, but you're not quite sure, uh, I think it would be really important to reach out to [email protected] or [email protected], send them the course that you're thinking about taking and make sure that they, would approve it for a PSYPACT renewal. Meghan Beier, PhD: So a little bit about [00:19:00] who is considered an approved CE provider. Um, a, I already mentioned this a little bit, but APA approved CE providers or sponsors, for example, Find Empathy or many others. So I also put here like the trust, um, is also an APA approved CE sponsor, and there's. thousands of others. Meghan Beier, PhD: The, uh, ABPP specialty Boards or Association for Psychological Science they have, uh, courses available, regionally accredited universities or accredited medical schools AMA or Canadian Medical Association, uh, CME. Or the American or Canadian Bar Association if directly relevant to psychological practice. Meghan Beier, PhD: So with the courses they have are directly relevant to psychological practice. Meghan Beier, PhD: Courses from non psychology organizations are acceptable only if they're clearly relevant to the practice of psychology. So I wanted to just let you know that there is a [00:20:00] wide range of courses that are available, um, or that you can use, um, for this renewal. Meghan Beier, PhD: I also think that finding information from different, psychology professional groups can be really helpful. So one that I actually have found especially helpful, not only for answering questions, but looking at different information across states, licensing, uh, differences between states is, um, this Facebook group, PSYPACT Psychologist, this is not sponsored by PSYPACT, but it was one that was developed by a moderator or, or it was developed by someone who you know, wanted to pull together people who were all practicing who all had obtained their authorization to practice across state lines. Meghan Beier, PhD: This certainly is not the only resource, but I bring this up because, um, if you look, if you do join this group and you look under, um, the files section, you can see that there's been a [00:21:00] bunch of different documents developed, um, both by, uh, the person who organized this group initially as well as members of the group. Meghan Beier, PhD: For example, um, there is a, continuing education options, word document that lists a bunch of different organizations that members of the group have obtained their CE credits from. So, um, there, all that being said is that, uh, you may find answers to questions through groups like this and, and many others, maybe your state organization or even divisions within APA. Meghan Beier, PhD: This, ah, although this picture is very silly of me. Um, but this is a one minute video that takes you through all the steps of how to renew your PSYPACT E. Passport. So I'm gonna just show you the slide here, but I'm going to put the video in the course page in the, on the course landing page. So that if you wanted to watch that video in order [00:22:00] to get step-by-step instructions for how to renew and, and what are all the pieces of it, you can watch this video. Meghan Beier, PhD: Another provider question. I submitted my PSYPACT renewal before the deadline. But it hasn't processed yet, and now my credential is expired. Actually, I've uh, seen this question a lot recently. It seems like just in the last couple of weeks the renewal process has actually extended to a month or more for many people. Meghan Beier, PhD: So, uh, somebody might have, uh, renewed, submitted their renewal application by the deadline, but now that deadline has passed and they're wondering, can I keep seeing clients while it's pending or do I have to pause treatment until it's approved? Meghan Beier, PhD: You do not have to pause treatment. The renewal process, according to PSYPACT frequently asked questions on their website, says the renewal process usually takes about three to four [00:23:00] weeks. They state on the website, uh, you can continue to practice without interruption even if your expiration date passes. While we are re um, while we are reviewing if you submitted your E. Passport renewal for review before the expiration date, I will make a special note here though. Meghan Beier, PhD: Um, I've seen a couple of people mention. That if they're waiting more than a month, you know, so six weeks has gone by, two months has gone by. Uh, they have actually reached out and gotten their renewal approved within a couple of days. So I think it might be helpful that if you're waiting beyond this three, four week period, reach out to them just to make sure that, uh, your application didn't accidentally fall through the cracks. Meghan Beier, PhD: Or get missed. Meghan Beier, PhD: Do providers get reminders to renew PSYPACT or their E. Passport, or do you need to track renewal dates on your own? Meghan Beier, PhD: Yes, you will [00:24:00] receive reminders to renew. The PSYPACT system, PSYPRO, will send you an automatic reminder 90 days, 60 days, and 30 days prior to your expiration date, so you don't have to track that on your own. Meghan Beier, PhD: Again, another provider question here. I do not have any patients outside of my state of licensure. Instead of paying the fees to renew, can I put my E. Passport and APIT on hold and come back to it later? Meghan Beier, PhD: Yes, you can leave your E. Passport and APIT in an expired status for up to two years. If you decide to reinstate it within the two year period, you'll need to complete the missed renewals and provide continuing education for the renewal period. If your two year if two years has passed and you did not reinstate your E. Passport or APIT, then you will need to complete a new application. Meghan Beier, PhD: Now we're gonna go into jurisdiction, [00:25:00] which laws apply and when. Meghan Beier, PhD: Again, I'm gonna start with some definitions here. Meghan Beier, PhD: Our home state, the PSYPACT state in which you are licensed and physically located when providing surfaces services is your home state. For Telepsychology, you must initiate the session from your home state. Meghan Beier, PhD: So for example. I am licensed in both Maryland and Pennsylvania. My home state is registered as Maryland 'cause that's the place where I live and work from. So that would be my home state. Pennsylvania would actually not be my home state because I'm not living and sitting in it when I start my telepsychology sessions, my home state is Maryland. Meghan Beier, PhD: However, for example, if I was gonna spend six months in Maryland and two months in Pennsylvania, um, I could actually change change my home state because I [00:26:00] have a license there and they're also a PSYPACT State, but I'm gonna talk about that more in a scenario in the future. Meghan Beier, PhD: The receiving states. So all of these little bubbles of the different patients that this provider is working with, those are the places where your patients are located when they, they're receiving telepsychology services. Meghan Beier, PhD: The laws and regulations of the receiving state apply for most aspects of practice. Meghan Beier, PhD: Now for those people who are using the TAP or the temporary auth authorization to practice, the distant state is defined as the state in which you, the psychologist are located when you're providing temporary in-person face-to-face services, under temporary authorization to practice. So that means if you travel to a state, um, outside of your home state and you're meeting with somebody face to face and you have that temporary authorization of practice, that [00:27:00] is a distant state. Meghan Beier, PhD: Just a qualitative note here. Recently, I've seen a few psychologists that use PSYPACT for seeing people via telepsychology discussing the idea of traveling to visit patients face-to-face in their states, the states in which the patients are located, in order to comply with the new Medicare requirements. Meghan Beier, PhD: If this is something that you're thinking about doing or decide to do, ensure that you also obtain your TAP or temporary authorization to practice. Because you're not able to see a patient in person in a state in which you're not licensed, simply under the PSYPACT APIT authorization to practice interjurisdictional telepsychology because just to reiterate, I know we've said this a couple of times, but just to reiterate, APIT is for telepsychology visits and TAP is for temporary in-person [00:28:00] visits. Meghan Beier, PhD: So what laws and when. You must comply with the scope of practice, safety laws so for example duty to warn, abuse reporting, record keeping rules, informed consent, and so on, of the receiving or distant state. So the receiving state, remember that's the one where your patients are located or where you are located if you go to another state for temporary authorization to practice. Meghan Beier, PhD: You also cannot exceed what is allowed in your home state license. So for example, if your home state doesn't allow something, for example, prescribing rights, you can't do it in the receiving state under PSYPACT, even if that receiving state allows it. So you are constrained by the rules of your home state license. Meghan Beier, PhD: If there is a board complaint. The home state has primary authority, [00:29:00] but the receiving and distant states can refer or restrict your ability to practice under PSYPACT if you breach their laws. So you kind of have to pay attention to both the laws in which you are sitting and the laws in which each of your patients is sitting. Meghan Beier, PhD: Informed consent. So this is an example of kind of the situation of what laws and when, and I, I'm using this as maybe a case example and there's probably, um, lots of different laws. That we could look at. But, um, this one specifically I wanted to show because I found this nice image of the United States with different states, um, all sort of colored, uh, in green and blue, yellow and orange. Meghan Beier, PhD: Which apply to differences in informed consent rules, uh, according to state. So first of all, uh, you need to review the laws for all the states in which you have clients. Meghan Beier, PhD: There's a great app you [00:30:00] can use called Telemental Health Laws, and I will flash that app app up here on the screen. This app allows you to look up all of the different Telemental health laws by state. Meghan Beier, PhD: You want to identify whether the laws are the same or different from your home state. You also want communicate your obligations and differences in state laws from your home state and the receiving state, for example, if you're practicing telepsychology, to your patient through your intake forms and your informed consent conversations. Meghan Beier, PhD: So for example in, uh, based on looking at this map in Washington state. Your duty to protect and warn is mandatory. So if you hear, uh, that a, an individual that the patient that you're working with, is going to at least state that they're going to harm [00:31:00] somebody then your duty to protect or warn the person that they're going to harm is mandatory. Meghan Beier, PhD: However, in Maine there is no duty to protect or warn, so depending on where your home state is. If you are sitting in Maine, for example, you have no duty to protect or warn. However, if you're working with a patient in Washington, there is a mandatory duty to protect and warn. Meghan Beier, PhD: So you have to know the differences between your homes state and that receiving state. If you're sitting in Washington and you start working with a patient in Maine you may actually have to tell the patients in Maine, even though your state, there is no duty to protect or warn my home state actually requires that. Meghan Beier, PhD: So, um, there's a difference here and I want you to know that I will actually be required or, [00:32:00] or mandated to protect and warn. Obviously, talk to your own legal counsel. I am not a, um, a, I am not a lawyer and, um, I am not legal counsel. But, uh, it, it may be best to not only let patients know the differences between the, um, different states, but also to let them know what your plan of action is and that's often the more conservative of the two differences Meghan Beier, PhD: Provider question here. Can a state that I'm not licensed in be my home state? So the scenario, uh, example would be Dr. Smith is licensed in Washington state, but is planning to move to Oregon. She is not licensed in Oregon. Can Dr. Smith declare Washington as her home state and be authorized to practice telepsychology in a compact state under this license? Meghan Beier, PhD: In short, [00:33:00] no. Um, the authorization holder, the licensed psychologist must be licensed and physically present in their home state. So if she moves to Oregon, she can no longer use her Washington state license to use PSYPACT. Meghan Beier, PhD: However, if she is close to the Washington state border, maintains her Washington State license and plans to keep a physical office in Washington, thereby sitting in Washington state while initiating and conducting Telepsychology sessions. Even though she's living in Oregon, if she's practicing in a state in which she's licensed and physically located there when initiating sessions, she can continue to use PSYPACT in this second type of scenario. Meghan Beier, PhD: Another thing to keep in mind with this scenario. Oregon is not currently a PSYPACT state, so Dr. Smith, if she plans to fully transfer her practice to Oregon, [00:34:00] needs to make a plan for all of her PSYPACT patients. Given that she is moving to a non PSYPACT state, she will not be able to maintain those patients via PSYPACT alone. She would only be able to continue seeing them via Telepsychology if she obtains licensure in the states in which those patients are located. Meghan Beier, PhD: Another provider question. Can I be authorized to practice inter-jurisdictional telepsychology if I'm licensed in a PSYPACT compact state, but living and licensed in a non-compact state? Meghan Beier, PhD: Another scenario, Dr. Sagres is licensed in Colorado and California. Colorado is a PSYPACT compact state, but California is not. He lives in California. Can Dr. Sagres apply under his Colorado license? Meghan Beier, PhD: Similar to the last question, the answer is no. The authorization holders must be located and licensed in a compact state. Meghan Beier, PhD: However, if Dr. Sagres spent [00:35:00] part of the year in Colorado, he would be able to apply and see patients while located there, but would no longer be able to use the authorization when returning to California. Meghan Beier, PhD: If a client I usually see through PSYPACT comes to my home state for a session, is that visit just covered under my home state license or is it still considered PSYPACT? Meghan Beier, PhD: PSYPACT is only needed when delivering services across state lines. So in the above scenario, yes, the patient is seen under the jurisdiction of the psychologist's home state. Meghan Beier, PhD: There are a couple things to keep in mind here though, documentation. So make sure to document, document the location of the patient for each session. When they are in their receiving state, uh, versus when they are actually being seen in your home state, face-to-face. This is important actually with the new Medicare laws that [00:36:00] are, um, coming up with needing to see patients in person. Meghan Beier, PhD: Um, so for example, if you're living, in New Jersey and the patient lives in Pennsylvania and is coming to see you in person for that new Medicare in person requirement, um, you want make sure that you're documenting the location of the patient for the in-person session, as well as for virtual sessions moving forward. Meghan Beier, PhD: Informed consent. Again, if needed, ensure that the patient is aware of any changes in law, reporting requirements between the two states, especially when they're sitting in one state versus the other. Meghan Beier, PhD: Provider question. How do PSYPACT providers manage emergencies when client and clinician are in different states? Um, it's important to note that when you dial 9 1 1, your local dispatch may not be able to connect with the patient's local emergency services. That's why during the first session, it's essential to get the patient's [00:37:00] current address. Meghan Beier, PhD: Ask them for their local emergency contact information, or research it yourself and keep a list for each PSYPACT client. This is also why it's important to continue confirming your patient's location at the start of every session. Meghan Beier, PhD: Just want share a quick little de-identified, um, scenario that happened to me. Meghan Beier, PhD: I was working with somebody who had a medical emergency during, uh, one of our sessions together. Meghan Beier, PhD: And so it was important for me to know one, number one, where the patient was located. Meghan Beier, PhD: And number two, um, contact information of family or friends or a loved one who could, immediately help that person. Is there somebody else in the house that I can call immediately to check on the person. Meghan Beier, PhD: And number three, the local hospital, so that I could send emergency services, but also, let the [00:38:00] emergency department know that this patient was now being brought in for immediate care. Meghan Beier, PhD: So all of those things are very important when you start working with somebody who's outside of your local area Meghan Beier, PhD: Now onto our Practice Questions. Meghan Beier, PhD: Provider question regarding practice. Can I bill insurance for telepsychology services provided under PSYPACT? So this is a little bit of a nuanced question and one that we might do a future course in to talk about all of those nuances and challenges. PSYPACT has worked with APA to ensure that insurance providers are aware of PSYPACT. Meghan Beier, PhD: However, PSYPACT does not oversee or govern, govern billing or insurance reimbursement. Traditionally it, again, if you kind of follow some of these different like listservs and PSYPACT information boards, you'll see that traditionally insurance [00:39:00] plans governed, um, by the state, do actually require that at this point telehealth is paid at the same rate as in-person services. Meghan Beier, PhD: However, some self-insured insured plans often paid by employers are not, always regulated by the states and may or may not cover telehealth. Meghan Beier, PhD: The bottom line here is that PSYPACT recommends that coverage be verified prior to providing services. Um, and sometimes it's helpful to provide the CPT codes to the patients that are calling in and get them to check and make sure that you will be covered under their insurance plan. Meghan Beier, PhD: Now if you are somebody that does testing, this is an important question for you. If I use a test technician or psychometrist, can they administer assessments to clients located outside of my home state under my PSYPACT authorization? And the answer is no, [00:40:00] PSYPACT authorization is granted to licensed psychologists. Meghan Beier, PhD: Authorization is not granted to unlicensed testers, psychometrist, or supervisees in the practice or clinic. Meghan Beier, PhD: Another provider question. Can trainees, I'm supervising see patients under PSYPACT authorization? Again, the answer is sort of no. PSYPACT authorization applies only to psychologists with full unrestricted licensure, supervisees, trainees, interns, practicum students, they're not included. Meghan Beier, PhD: Outside of PSYPACT, the allowance of telesupervision varies across states. Some allow remote supervision, others only under certain circumstances. And, this research article is extremely helpful for reviewing, the legitimacy of telesupervision, but also how policies are different across the United States. Meghan Beier, PhD: So for example, if you're [00:41:00] licensed in multiple states, um, so I'm licensed in Maryland and Pennsylvania. You want check with both Maryland and Pennsylvania to see whether or not you can supervise somebody in Pennsylvania while you're sitting in Maryland or vice versa, b ecause the rules actually might be different, um, depending on the state. Meghan Beier, PhD: What happens if I or my patient travels? This is a big question. And there's also lots of nuances to this question, and this is one that, I will be creating another course around and off already, um, because I think this is something that's happening more and more. Um, it's also something that we all have to manage at times. Meghan Beier, PhD: So if you go to a conference and you're out of town for a week, does that mean that you have to cancel all of your patients? If you have a, a loved one, um, and a parent or grandparent who's sick and ill and needs more direct care for a few weeks can you travel and [00:42:00] continue to see your patients? Under what circumstances are you able to continue seeing your patients? Meghan Beier, PhD: So all of these are very interesting, and helpful questions. Meghan Beier, PhD: Provider question here. Um, I am licensed in two PSYPACT participating states. I want split my time between the two states. How difficult is it to change my PSYPACT home state? So switching your PSYPACT home state is actually quite simple. You log into psypro.org and update with just a few clicks. Meghan Beier, PhD: Um, if you want look in the course materials for a PDF of step-by-step walkthrough of the process, um, this is, uh, actually provided by PSYPACT, but I'll link to it so that you're able to see, exactly the process for changing your home state. Meghan Beier, PhD: Keep in mind though that if a board complaint is filed in any state, your PSYPACT registration will be locked into the state in which you are currently registered at the time.[00:43:00] Meghan Beier, PhD: So that means that if I am licensed in Maryland. And Pennsylvania, if I, um, usually living in Maryland, but I travel to Pennsylvania, for a month to help my family member who's recovering from surgery. I can change my home state to Pennsylvania and continue to see patients via PSYPACT. But if there's a board complaint within that month that I'm there, I'm now going to be, my home state's gonna be locked into Pennsylvania. Meghan Beier, PhD: So if I travel back to Maryland where my home is located, I can no longer use Maryland as my home state until, um, the Pennsylvania is unlocked. So important to keep in mind. Meghan Beier, PhD: Also of note travel certainly adds extra complexity. If you or your client is traveling, it can raise unique legal and ethical and practice practical considerations. [00:44:00] Recently was talking to a colleague of mine, um, who was wondering, if they could continue to see a patient who was traveling for a few weeks overseas. All of that is a big, it depends. So, because there's so much nuance to all of this, I'm going to cover this in a completely separate course, focused on how to manage telepsychology practice while traveling, um, including situations outside of PSYPACT. Meghan Beier, PhD: Essentially the basic bottom line is when you are traveling, if you can't switch your home state, then you can't use PSYPACT. Meghan Beier, PhD: If I were to, um, travel to California, for example, California, um, number one, I'm not licensed there and it's not a PSYPACT state, as of this recording, I cannot use PSYPACT to continue seeing patients while I am there. I can only, see patients that are in states in which I am licensed. So for [00:45:00] example, I'm licensed in Maryland and Pennsylvania. Meghan Beier, PhD: As long as California allows it, I actually don't know. I'd have to look that up. Then I could see patients who are located in Maryland and Pennsylvania while I am sitting in California, but nowhere else. And the only reason I'm able to do that is because also Maryland and Pennsylvania's laws allow a, a clinician to be out of the state if their patient is located in the state in which they're licensed. Meghan Beier, PhD: So there's a bunch of very, uh, minute details and nuances here. And again, if you refer back to the app that I flashed up earlier, I'll put it here now so you can see it again. This includes all of these different laws including travel. So you can look at different states in which you might be traveling to, or a client might be, moving or traveling to, and see, uh, whether or not you need to change any part of your practice because, of the laws. Meghan Beier, PhD: So, [00:46:00] um, while we did cover a lot today, we didn't cover a whole bunch more. We didn't talk about, as I mentioned just now, national and international travel. Um, we didn't talk about how, you can ethically market and practice, and, and grow your practice using PSYPACT. Um, we didn't really talk about any legal, tax or business operations. Meghan Beier, PhD: Those kinds of questions come up a lot. We didn't talk about insurance and liability coverage. We, uh, didn't talk about, uh, you know, we very briefly touched on in insert insurance coverage but we didn't really dive into billing and reimbursement. Um, we very briefly touched on assessment and testing, but really didn't talk about neuropsychological assessment and testing. Meghan Beier, PhD: And, um, we didn't go into specifics about informed consent and documentation verbiage. I realize all of these are very important when you are, um, working, uh, across state lines and when you are, have an authorization to practice [00:47:00] under PSYPACT. So, watch out. Um, we'll be looking to cover all of these topics in the not too distant future. Meghan Beier, PhD: If there are any other topics that you think we've missed or that you want learn more about, uh, please don't hesitate to reach out to me. Uh, my email address is [email protected]. Uh, you can uh, look for more of our courses on learn.findempathy.com. And if you, uh, subscribe to the podcast, the Find Empathy Podcast, we put all new courses up there for absolutely free. Meghan Beier, PhD: Um, you can listen to them at any time. Um, you only pay if you need to get the CE credits. So we really, I truly want, um, education to be useful and helpful to people. Um, so that's why all of our education is completely free on YouTube and podcasts format. And we're able to keep all of this going by professionals who need the [00:48:00] CEs or, um, want to buy the CEs after listening. Meghan Beier, PhD: So if you've listened to this might as well get the CEs if you need them. Uh, and that helps us keep creating more education. Meghan Beier, PhD: I'm gonna show a few resources here. Um, this is the PSYPACT official site PSYPACT.org. You can go to psypro.org for applications, renewal documentation. Uh, I think it's, uh, the PSYPACT Rules book has a lot more information that we didn't cover today and goes into a lot more detail. Meghan Beier, PhD: And again that online app is called the EBG Law, telemental Health Tracker. Thanks so much for being here. We really appreciate it. Conclusion --- Meghan Beier, PhD: If you like our show, please like subscribe or leave a review. This helps others find out about us. Find empathy provides continuing education. If you would like to learn more about our courses, please click the link in the show notes or [00:49:00] visit learn.findempathy.com. While our education is free, the proceeds we receive from continuing education goes to support the maintenance of our website and the development of new content. Meghan Beier, PhD: Finally. Please know that the opinions expressed by the experts today are their own. We are not financially supported by any of the businesses or resources described in today's podcast. Additionally, any advertising that is published on the episode is chosen by our podcast hosting service and not by find empathy. The content provided today is for educational purposes only. Meghan Beier, PhD: Thank you so much for listening and we look forward to you joining us in the next episode.