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Elimination of the “R” Privilege for Licensed Clinical Social Worker

Chapter 818 of the Laws of 2022 amended New York Insurance Law regarding policy coverage for outpatient care provided by a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) acting within the lawful scope of his or her practice as defined in Article 154 of the Education Law and specifically eliminated the requirement that the LCSW demonstrate three years of post-LCSW supervised experience in diagnosis, psychotherapy and assessment-based treatment planning to earn the “R” privilege, effective January 1, 2023. A LCSW who earned the “R” privilege will retain that designation, but it is no longer required under the Insurance Law. Although §74.5 of the Commissioner’s regulations describes the requirements for the privilege, the Office of the Professions will no longer receive or process applications for the “R” privilege. The regulations will be updated in the near future. Chapter 818 of the Laws of 2022 also requires the Department to provide a list of eligible LCSWs. Individuals who are licensed and registered to practice in New York are listed on the Office of the Professions website: https://www.op.nysed.gov/verification-search. No additional designation is required; although, the consumer should verify that the licensee is competent to provide psychotherapy based on the licensee’s education, training and experience.