(a) Standard: General qualification requirements. All professionals who furnish services directly, under an individual contract, or under arrangements with a CMHC, must be legally authorized (licensed, certified or registered) in accordance with applicable Federal, State and local laws, and must act only within the scope of their State licenses, certifications, or registrations. All personnel qualifications must be kept current at all times.
(b) Standard: Personnel qualifications for certain disciplines. The following qualifications must be met:
(1) Administrator of a CMHC. A CMHC employee who meets the education and experience requirements established by the CMHC's governing body for that position and who is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the CMHC.
(2) Clinical psychologist. An individual who meets the qualifications at § 410.71(d) of this chapter.
(3) Clinical Social worker. An individual who meets the qualifications at § 410.73 of this chapter.
(4) Social worker. An individual who -
(i) Has a baccalaureate degree in social work from an institution accredited by the Council on Social Work Education, or a baccalaureate degree in psychology or sociology, and is supervised by a clinical social worker, as described in paragraph (b)(3) of this section; and
(ii) Has 1 year of social work experience in a psychiatric healthcare setting.
(5) Mental health counselor. A professional counselor who is certified and/or licensed by the State in which he or she practices, and has the skills and knowledge to provide a range of behavioral health services to clients. The mental health counselor conducts assessments and provides services in areas such as psychotherapy, substance abuse, crisis management, psychoeducation, and prevention programs.
(6) Occupational therapist. A person who meets the requirements for the definition of “occupational therapist” at § 484.4 of this chapter.
(7) Physician. An individual who meets the qualifications and conditions as defined in section 1861(r) of the Act, and provides the services at § 410.20 of this chapter, and has experience providing mental health services to clients.
(8) Physician assistant. An individual who meets the qualifications and conditions as defined in section 1861(s)(2)(K)(i) of the Act and provides the services, in accordance with State law, at § 410.74 of this chapter.
(9) Advanced practice nurse. An individual who meets the following qualifications:
(i) Is a nurse practitioner who meets the qualifications at § 410.75 of this chapter; or
(ii) Is a clinical nurse specialist who meets the qualifications at § 410.76 of this chapter.
(10) Psychiatric registered nurse. A registered nurse, who is a graduate of an approved school of professional nursing, is licensed as a registered nurse by the State in which he or she is practicing, and has at least 1 year of education and/or training in psychiatric nursing.
(11) Psychiatrist. An individual who specializes in assessing and treating persons having psychiatric disorders; is board certified, or is eligible to be board certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, or has documented equivalent education, training or experience, and is fully licensed to practice medicine in the State in which he or she practices.
(c) Standard: COVID-19 vaccination of center staff. The CMHC must develop and implement policies and procedures to ensure that all center staff are fully vaccinated for COVID-19. For purposes of this section, staff are considered fully vaccinated if it has been 2 weeks or more since they completed a primary vaccination series for COVID-19. The completion of a primary vaccination series for COVID-19 is defined here as the administration of a single-dose vaccine, or the administration of all required doses of a multi-dose vaccine.
(1) Regardless of clinical responsibility or client contact, the policies and procedures must apply to the following center staff, who provide any care, treatment, or other services for the center and/or its clients:
(i) Center employees;
(ii) Licensed practitioners;
(iii) Students, trainees, and volunteers; and
(iv) Individuals who provide care, treatment, or other services for the center and/or its clients, under contract or by other arrangement.
(2) The policies and procedures of this section do not apply to the following center staff:
(i) Staff who exclusively provide telehealth or telemedicine services outside of the center setting and who do not have any direct contact with clients and other staff specified in paragraph (c)(1) of this section; and
(ii) Staff who provide support services for the center that are performed exclusively outside of the center setting and who do not have any direct contact with clients and other staff specified in paragraph (c)(1) of this section.
(3) The policies and procedures must include, at a minimum, the following components:
(i) A process for ensuring all staff specified in paragraph (c)(1) of this section (except for those staff who have pending requests for, or who have been granted, exemptions to the vaccination requirements of this section, or those staff for whom COVID-19 vaccination must be temporarily delayed, as recommended by the CDC, due to clinical precautions and considerations) have received, at a minimum, a single-dose COVID-19 vaccine, or the first dose of the primary vaccination series for a multi-dose COVID-19 vaccine prior to staff providing any care, treatment, or other services for the CMHC and/or its clients;
(ii) A process for ensuring that all staff specified in paragraph (c)(1) of this section are fully vaccinated for COVID-19, except for those staff who have been granted exemptions to the vaccination requirements of this section, or those staff for whom COVID-19 vaccination must be temporarily delayed, as recommended by the CDC, due to clinical precautions and considerations;
(iii) A process for ensuring the implementation of additional precautions, intended to mitigate the transmission and spread of COVID-19, for all staff who are not fully vaccinated for COVID-19;
(iv) A process for tracking and securely documenting the COVID-19 vaccination status for all staff specified in paragraph (c)(1) of this section;
(v) A process for tracking and securely documenting the COVID-19 vaccination status of any staff who have obtained any booster doses as recommended by the CDC;
(vi) A process by which staff may request an exemption from the staff COVID-19 vaccination requirements based on an applicable Federal law;
(vii) A process for tracking and securely documenting information provided by those staff who have requested, and for whom the CMHC has granted, an exemption from the staff COVID-19 vaccination requirements;
(viii) A process for ensuring that all documentation, which confirms recognized clinical contraindications to COVID-19 vaccines and which supports staff requests for medical exemptions from vaccination, has been signed and dated by a licensed practitioner, who is not the individual requesting the exemption, and who is acting within their respective scope of practice as defined by, and in accordance with, all applicable State and local laws, and for further ensuring that such documentation contains
(A) All information specifying which of the authorized COVID-19 vaccines are clinically contraindicated for the staff member to receive and the recognized clinical reasons for the contraindications; and
(B) A statement by the authenticating practitioner recommending that the staff member be exempted from the CMHC's COVID-19 vaccination requirements for staff based on the recognized clinical contraindications;
(ix) A process for ensuring the tracking and secure documentation of the vaccination status of staff for whom COVID-19 vaccination must be temporarily delayed, as recommended by the CDC, due to clinical precautions and considerations, including, but not limited to, individuals with acute illness secondary to COVID-19, and individuals who received monoclonal antibodies or convalescent plasma for COVID-19 treatment; and
(x) Contingency plans for staff who are not fully vaccinated for COVID-19.
[78 FR 64630, Oct. 29, 2013, as amended at 86 FR 61624, Nov. 5, 2021]