Welcome to the TAMFT "Get to Know the Board" spotlight series! In this recurring event, we will highlight each of our TAMFT board members one at a time so that you can put a face with the name of the people who make up the governing body of TAMFT.
On August 6th, 2021, Governor Greg Abbott sent a letter to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services regarding gender-affirming care for children and adolescents. In response, the TAMFT board signed a joint letter with other Texas mental health professional organizations, communicating our collective concern for how these changes would directly and significantly impact our ability to practice.
The Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC) has launched new modules for the online licensing system.
AUSTIN – Governor Greg Abbott has appointed Jodie Elder, Ph.D. and reappointed Anthony Scoma, D.Min. and Evelyn Husband Thompson to the Texas State Board of Examiners of Marriage and Family Therapists for terms set to expire on February 1, 2027. The board licenses and regulates Marriage and Family Therapists in Texas.
If you are a mental health professional concerned with the well-being of families, couples, and individuals in the State of Texas, the Texas Association for Marriage and Family Therapy would like to know how we can better serve you. Please take the time to complete this 3-question survey for a chance to win one of several Amazon gift cards. Your responses will be anonymous.
To provide better customer service and greater efficiency, the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council is moving toward online applications for each of its licensing programs.
Your TAMFT Board is proud to represent you by attending regular TSBEMFT meetings. You may download a full report of the most recent TSBEMFT meeting here.
By way of a quick update on an important action taken late Monday by the Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC), please see the anticipated Attorney General’s opinion request linked here, seeking legal clarification in connection with proposed rules changes to a social worker’s “Code of Conduct” affecting their anti-discrimination rules as promulgated by the Texas State Board of Social Worker Examiners alongside their licensure statute.
TAMFT has taken note of the proposed changes approved by the Texas State Board of Social Work Examiners, in connection with certain anti-discriminatory provisions contained in their code of conduct. While we appreciate the gravity of this issue facing licensed social workers in Texas, we wanted to express our thoughts on the matter to help inform our members:
On Wednesday, October 21, Governor Abbott's office officially announced the appointment of three new members to the Texas Board of Examiners of Marriage and Family Therapists, which licenses and regulates marriage and family therapists in Texas.
Governor Greg Abbott last week announced that the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) is extending flexibilities to Medicaid and CHIP recipients and providers through October 23, 2020, as the state continues to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. These flexibilities will minimize face-to-face interactions and ensure continuity of care for clients during the COVID-19 response.
A reminder that as of September 1, 2020, the Texas State Board of Examiners of Marriage and Family Therapists (TSBEMFT) will move out of the Health and Human Services commission (HHSC) and relocate to the Behavioral Health Executive Commission (BHEC). The TSBEMFT will remain an autonomous board with control over our licenses, rules and profession. BHEC will assume administrative functions such as processing license issuances and renewals, handling investigative complaints before potentially sending them to our board, and ensuring that the background operations run smoothly so that our board can operate as effectively as possible.
The Texas State Board of Examiners of Marriage and Family Therapists is an independent licensing board administratively attached to the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC). The Board, as an independent entity, maintains a management structure and decision-making authority separate from HHSC. This message is an official communication from the Texas State Board of Examiners of Marriage and Family Therapists that TAMFT wanted to share with its members:
TAMFT recently received the following update from TSBEMFT. Please take note of this important information.
The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) is extending a requirement that insurers cover telemedicine services, including mental health visits, at the same rate as in-person visits. An emergency rule in place since March helps doctors across Texas treat their patients and limit the spread of COVID-19.
The Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council recently released a non-discrimination statement, shared below:
Dear TAMFT Members and Friends,
TAMFT is excited to announce a partnership with Texas-based attorney Kenda Dalrymple, of Dalrymple, Shellhorse, Ellis & Diamond, LLP, to provide TAMFT members with answers to frequently asked legal and ethical questions and the opportunity to consult with an attorney who understands Texas law and regulations when needed.
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is responsible for enforcing certain regulations issued under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act, to protect the privacy and security of protected health information, namely the HIPAA Privacy, Security and Breach Notification Rules (the HIPAA Rules).
