Synopsis of State Laws
LeeAnne Valentine
Coun5222
May 10, 2015
Dr. Matthew Pace

Synopsis of State Laws
As a future marriage and family counselor, there are certain steps that one would have to take to become a licensed therapist. The process of doing so varies from each state, and the process includes many different views on ethic codes for a therapist to follow. In this essay, it will highlight the synopsis of New York State Laws concerning the process and procedures for obtaining a psychology licensure, and its views on ethical codes.
According to the New York State Education website (2015), they listed the general requirements that are a) “be of good moral character”; b) “be at least 21 years of age;” c) meet education requirements;” d) “meet experience requirements;” e) meet examination requirements;” and “complete coursework or training in the identification and reporting of child abuse offered by a New York State approved provider" (NYSED.com, 2015). Those mentioned above are the basic ones that eventually broaden into an in-depth process of obtaining a license as a marriage and family therapist. With educational requirements, there are three ways to provide evidence of education for licensing purposes. The first way is having a master's or a doctoral degree from a program in marriage and family therapy registered by the Department as licensure qualifying, or accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Marriage and Family Therapy Education commonly known as COAMFTE, or be determined by the department in recognizing a program that is registered or accredited by such (NYSED.gov, 2015). The second way is having a master’s or doctoral degree from a program that delves into allied mental health that is acceptable to the department, in which includes but not limited to mental health counseling, social work, or psychology. There also needs to be additional graduate level coursework, in which is also determined by the department. Finally, if one decides to complete a program that is outside of the United States, the department would need to recognize a program that prepares the individual for the profession, is recognized by the proper authorities of that jurisdiction, and can be verified by the department (NYSED.gov, 2015). With this in mind, a potential client must complete a program that is at least 45-semester hours or an equivalent of studies that are similar to the coursework. The last component of the requirement is that a potential counselor or therapist must complete at least 1,500 hours of residential training or "client contact hours" in the practice of Marriage and Family Therapy. This can be completed with limited permit issued by the department or it can be completed in a licensure qualifying education program under the supervision of a licensed and registered supervisor in New York State to practice Marriage and Family Therapy. The supervisor would need to meet with the potential therapist one hour per week, or four hours per month in person for assessment, evaluation, and to provide guidance, direction and oversight in helping one develop necessary skills as a Marriage and Family therapist. The final step to ensuring a license as a Marriage and Family therapist is to pass the “Examination in Marital and Family Therapy” developed by the Association of Martial and Family Therapy Regulatory Boards (AMFTRB) and administered by Professional Examination Services (PES) (NYSED.gov, 2015).
As for limited confidentiality, New York State has a federal law in place, in which requires providers of health care “to ensure the privacy of patient records and health information” (Office of Mental Health, 2015). This was also known as the Privacy Rule, in which is to provide strong legal protections for privacy of individual health information without intervention of patient's access to treatment, health care operations, or quality of care. In one aspect of the Privacy Rule is that it protects all "protected