On July 3rd, the New York State (NYS) Office of Mental Health (OMH) released a Notice of Adoption in the State Register with final revisions to 14 NYCRR Part 596, which contains OMH’s regulations on Telemental Health Services (formerly called telepsychiatry services). These regulations:
- Expand the types of practitioners who can provide Telemental Health Services;
- Allow services to be performed in additional types of recipient and provider locations; and
- Permit additional OMH programs, including Personalized Recovery Oriented Services and Assertive Community Treatment, to provide services through telemental health.
Major changes from the draft to final version include:
- OMH added licensed creative arts therapists and licensed marriage and family therapists to the list of practitioner types who may perform Telemental Health Services.
- OMH clarified that these regulations also cover non-licensed designated or authorized providers. As such, the new Children’s Mental Health Rehabilitation Services certification category of providers, which will offer Children and Family Treatment and Support Services, is now included under these regulations.
- OMH will authorize providers to provide Telemental Health Services based on a demonstration of workforce shortages (in addition to the original justification to improve care quality).
The attached document summarizes the final regulations. The full regulations are available here. There will be a multiagency guidance document released later this year that will provide telehealth/telemental health guidelines for providers designated or licensed across multiple NYS agencies.