STAND. COM. REP. NO.294

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2001

RE: S.B. No. 839

S.D. 1

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Health and Human Services, to which was referred S.B. No. 839 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO SOCIAL WORK,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to clarify the scope of practice of licensed social workers to allow clinical diagnosis or psychotherapy.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Board of Psychology, Department of Human Services, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Hawaii Youth Services Network, The Sex Abuse Treatment Center, National Association of Social Workers, BodyMind & Breath Center, After Hours Clinic, and sixteen private citizens.

Your Committee finds that the practice of social work has two components: traditional social work and clinical counseling. Traditional social work involves a plethora of social services, such as welfare, child abuse, probation, and parole. A recent trend is the emergence of social workers who act independently and provide professional services akin to counseling and psychotherapy. Current law provides for licensing of traditional social workers. Your Committee further finds that clinical counseling practice should also be regulated to protect the public health, safety, and well being.

According to testimony, other states are moving in the direction of regulating social workers who perform clinical counseling. Your Committee prefers the term "licensed independent clinical social workers" to clinical social workers, to more accurately describe the specialty and to clearly distinguish the higher level of professional work done by the licensed independent clinical social workers. Your Committee wishes to make clear that this measure, as amended, is not intended to conflict with, invade the province of, or supplant the work of psychiatrists and psychologists, but is intended to be complementary to those professions. Your Committee realizes that many times a person may need no more than counseling and therapy that can be provided without a visit to a psychiatrist or psychologist. It is the intent of this measure to make the services of licensed independent clinical social workers more readily available to the public.

Your Committee has amended this measure by replacing its contents with new language establishing a new part to chapter 467E, Hawaii Revised Statutes, to regulate the practice of licensed independent clinical social workers.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Health and Human Services that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 839, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 839, S.D. 1, and be referred to the Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Health and Human Services,

____________________________

DAVID MATSUURA, Chair