The demand for licensed behavioral health providers continues to outpace supply, leaving many individuals without timely access to care, especially in underserved and rural areas. To help bridge this gap, Connecticut has joined a growing number of states in adopting interstate licensure compacts for psychologists, professional counselors, and, most recently, clinical social workers.
These compacts – PSYPACT (psychologists), the Counseling Compact (licensed professional counselors), and the Social Work Compact (licensed clinical and master social workers) – allow qualified providers to offer services across state lines, expanding access to care. Part 1 of this article explores the basic contours of the licensure compacts and Part 2 examines important compliance considerations.
Background
PSYPACT has been operational and issuing cross-state privileges for a few years in Connecticut. The Counseling and Social Work Compacts, enacted in 2023 and 2024 respectively, on the other hand, are not yet operational as the national infrastructure is being built out.
The Counseling Compact reports that “the process to apply for and receive compact privileges is in the works and will be available in 2025.” The Social Work Compact anticipates that “the implementation process for the compact will take 12 to 24 months [from activation, which was in Spring 2024] before multistate licenses are able to issued.”
There currently is no national compact available for licensed marriage and family therapists (LMFTs).
Comparison of CT Adopted Compacts for Behavioral Health Professionals
| § 20-187b (PSYPACT) | § 20-195hh (Counseling Compact) | Public Act 24-30 (Social Work Compact) | |
| Profession | Psychologists | Licensed Professional Counselors | Licensed Clinical and Master Social Workers |
| Telehealth | Permits telepsychology across member states | Permits telehealth counseling across member states | Permits telehealth social work services across member states |
| In-Person Practice | Allows temporary in-person practice (up to 30 days/year) (separately granted) | Yes | Yes |
| Compliance | Must comply with the laws of the state where the patient receives services | Must comply with the laws of the state where the patient receives services | Must comply with the laws of the state where the patient receives services |
| License Recognition | Legal recognition of out-of-state licenses | Mutual recognition of licenses among member states | Establishes a multistate license recognized by member states |
| Military Members or Spouses | Not specified | Provides support for relocating active-duty military members and spouses | Provides support for relocating active-duty military members and spouses |
| Regulatory Authority | Maintains state authority over psychology practice | Maintains state authority over counseling practice | Maintains state authority over social work practice |
| Current Status | Effective and issuing privileges | Activated but not yet issuing cross-state privileges (expected in 2025) | Activated but not yet issuing multistate licenses (expected in 2025 or 2026) |
| Number of Member States | 42 | 38 | 25 |
| Statute | CGS § 20-187b | CGS § 20-195hh | Public Act 24-30 |
| Compact
Website |
https://psypact.gov | https://counselingcompact.gov | https://swcompact.org/ |
Notable Provisions:
- PSYPACT: Enables licensed psychologists to provide telepsychology services under an Authority to Practice Interjurisdictional Telepsychology (ATIP) or to provide temporary in-person services (up to 30 days per year) under a Temporary Authorization to Practice (TAP) across member states. There are separate application processes for each privilege type. PSYPACT offers extensive resources on its website.
- Counseling Compact: Allows licensed professional counselors to practice in other compact member states without obtaining additional licenses, but the counselor must apply on a state-by-state basis. The counselor’s home state license must not have had any encumbrance or restriction in the previous two years.
- Social Work Compact: Permits licensed social workers to obtain one multistate license from their home state that is recognized by all compact member states under a multistate authorization to practice corresponding to each category of licensure in each member state (i.e., LCSW, LMSW, LBSW).
- The loss of license in the home state terminates the privilege to practice in ANY compact state. This is critical for providers to understand. More on this in Part 2 of this series.
Compact Commissions and Data Systems
Each behavioral health licensure compact is governed by a national compact commission, which is an administrative body made up of representatives from each member state. The commission is responsible for overseeing the implementation and enforcement of the compact, developing rules and policies, and ensuring consistent standards across participating states.
A key function of the commission is to maintain a secure, centralized data system that tracks licensure status, disciplinary actions, and provider eligibility. This shared database allows states to verify credentials quickly and helps ensure that only qualified and compliant providers are authorized to practice across state lines.
Part 2
The next part in this series will explore key compliance considerations including confidentiality laws, telehealth rules, supervision requirements and other state-specific rules.