New report on telehealth in social work regulation

Culpeper, VA—OCTOBER 7, 2021

The Association of Social Work Boards recently published a detailed report on the regulation of telehealth practice by social workers in the United States and Canada. The new report is available at no charge through Social Work PROfile, a new service offered by ASWB for telehealth providers.

“The past 18 months have seen major shifts in how electronic practice is regulated by social work boards,” says Jennifer Henkel, LCSW, CAE. Henkel is ASWB’s senior director of member engagement and regulatory services. “As more of these COVID-related emergency provisions are expiring, we wanted to create a comprehensive report that can help telehealth agencies understand the landscape.”

Not only are social workers the largest segment of the behavioral health workforce, Henkel says, they also provide care coordination for patients in many areas of health care. “While online psychotherapy services have gotten a lot of attention during the pandemic,” Henkel says, “we know that social workers are employed in a variety of telehealth settings, and it’s important that their employers understand the rules for licensing.” As always, regulatory authority rests with the licensing boards themselves, but this report provides an excellent overview.

Telehealth employers may request a copy of the comprehensive report, Telehealth in Social Work Regulation, on SocialWorkPROfile.com. Social Work PROfile was developed to help telehealth employers comply with licensing rules for their social work staff members.

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About ASWB
The Association of Social Work Boards is the nonprofit association of social work regulatory bodies in the United States and Canada. Members include 50 states, Washington, D.C., the U.S. territories of the Virgin Islands and Guam, the U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and all 10 Canadian provinces. ASWB’s mission is to provide support and services to the social work regulatory community to advance safe, competent, and ethical practices to strengthen public protection.

Contacts:
Bobbie Hartman, bhartman@aswb.org; 540.829.6880, ext. 3008
Jayne Wood, jwood@aswb.org; 540.829.6880, ext. 3075 (media inquiries)

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