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The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) issued important new qualification standards for licensed professional counselors on April 3, a step the �ֲ���ý has been pushing the agency to take for many years.

The revised standards enable licensed professional mental health counselors (LPMHCs) to fully participate in the VA health-care system, implementing a long-sought shift away from the department’s previous limited and piecemeal approach to working with licensed professional counselors.

“The �ֲ���ýis very pleased that the VA issued these new standards,” �ֲ���ý Chief Executive Officer Richard Yep said. “This marks a milestone in a public policy battle fought by �ֲ���ýand its members for more than a decade.”

A Look at the New Standards

The revised standards clarify the scope of practice within the VA for professional counselors licensed at the independent practice level and enable professional counselors to work at supervisory levels and serve as program coordinators within the agency. In addition, the new standards enable the VA to recognize and accept doctoral degrees held by licensed professional counselors.

In a summary of the contents and major changes in the revision, the transmittal sheet on the standards noted “the addition of certain doctoral degrees as qualifying education and a Senior LPMHC assignment at the GS-12 grade level.”

“The new standards are effective on the date of this publication, however no action may be taken to convert or promote employees until training and guidance is received,” according to the transmittal sheet.

The new qualification standards will be incorporated into the electronic version of VA Handbook 5005, which is maintained on the .

�ֲ���ýMembers Were Instrumental

Yep praised �ֲ���ýmembers for the key role they played in the development of the new VA standards.

“I’m grateful for the advocacy work done by �ֲ���ýmembers on this issue,” he said. “This outcome could not have been achieved without their efforts. As a result of the hard work and perseverance of the �ֲ���ýmembership, the association has been able to fulfill its mission of making high-quality mental health care available to all of our nation’s veterans.”

Learn More

The new VA qualification standards for professional counselors are published here in their entirety: VA Qual Standards 

�ֲ���ýResources for Counselors Working With Veterans, Military Families

FOR WORK WITH VETERANS

Counseling Today articles: Department of Veterans Affairs

Counseling Today articles: Military Clients

Ethical Considerations When Counseling Military Clients (Sept. 2017)

Journal of Counseling and Development articles: Military Clients

Practice Briefs

The �ֲ���ýCenter for Counseling Practice, Policy, and Research offers Practice Briefs for �ֲ���ýmembers. Practice Briefs, written by scholars in the counseling profession, are research-based summaries of best practices, evidence-based practices, and research-based approaches covering a wide variety of client-presenting issues and counseling topics. Each Practice Brief is several pages in length, includes references, and has been peer-reviewed by two co-editors before being accepted for publication. The Practice Briefs available to members include:

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

�ֲ���ýMember Blog: Mental Health from a Combat Veteran Perspective

Duane K. L. France, an �ֲ���ýmember blogger, is a combat veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as a counselor working with veterans in Colorado.You can access his blog by clicking here.

�ֲ���ý2018 Conference Livestreaming Session: Military Clients

Soldier’s Heart: Counseling Combat Veterans at End of Life (April 2018)

DVD:  Military Clients

FOR WORK WITH MILITARY FAMILIES

Journal of Counseling and Development articles: Military Families

Webinar: Military Clients and Their Families