Virginia § 54.1-3520 Scope of practice, supervision, and qualifications of qualified mental health professionals

Virginia Statutes

§ 54.1-3520 — Scope of practice, supervision, and qualifications of qualified mental health professionals

Virginia § 54.1-3520

JurisdictionVirginia

Title 54.1Professions and Occupations

Subtitle IIIProfessions and Occupations Regulated by Boards Within the Department of Health Professions

Ch. 35Professional Counseling

Art. 4Behavioral Health Technicians and Qualified Mental Health Professionals

This text of Virginia § 54.1-3520 (Scope of practice, supervision, and qualifications of qualified mental health professionals) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Virginia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Va. Code Ann. § 54.1-3520 (2026).

Text

A. A qualified mental health professional shall be qualified to perform, under Board-approved supervision, collaborative behavioral health services, including the supportive functions of (i) screening;

(ii)intake;

(iii)orientation;

(iv)care coordination;

(v)client education;

(vi)referral activities;

(vii)initiating crisis de-escalation;

(viii)gathering histories of mental and physical health conditions, alcohol and drug use, past mental health treatment, and interactions with the criminal justice system;

(ix)providing psychosocial skills development;

(x)implementing interventions as assigned on individual plans of care and documenting the interventions for the purposes of recordkeeping; and (xi) prevention of mental health and substance use disorders. A registered qualified mental

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A. A qualified mental health professional shall be qualified to perform, under Board-approved supervision, collaborative behavioral health services, including the supportive functions of (i) screening; (ii) intake; (iii) orientation; (iv) care coordination; (v) client education; (vi) referral activities; (vii) initiating crisis de-escalation; (viii) gathering histories of mental and physical health conditions, alcohol and drug use, past mental health treatment, and interactions with the criminal justice system; (ix) providing psychosocial skills development; (x) implementing interventions as assigned on individual plans of care and documenting the interventions for the purposes of recordkeeping; and (xi) prevention of mental health and substance use disorders. A registered qualified mental health professional shall not engage in independent or autonomous practice and shall only perform collaborative behavioral health services.

B. Such registered qualified mental health professionals shall be supervised by either a mental health professional licensed by the Department of Health Professions who has completed the required supervisor training, a person under supervision that has been approved by the Board of Counseling, Board of Psychology, or Board of Social Work as a prerequisite for licensure who has completed the required supervisor training, or a registered qualified mental health professional who has practiced for three years and completed the required supervisor training. Registered qualified mental health professionals who have met the supervisor requirements may supervise activities within their scope. This supervision must occur under the broader required direction of and in collaboration with the licensed mental health professional or licensed eligible mental health professional.

C. Pursuant to regulations adopted by the Board, an applicant for registration as a qualified mental health professional shall submit evidence satisfactory to the Board that the applicant has (i) completed a specified number of hours of didactic education in a program or programs recognized or approved by the Board; (ii) received, at a minimum, a bachelor's degree from an institution of higher education accredited by an accrediting agency recognized by the Board; and (iii) accumulated a specified number of hours of Board-approved supervised experience.