District of Columbia Administrative Code

CORE SERVICE: SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER COUNSELING/THERAPY SUD Counseling/Therapy shall include Individual, Family, and Group Therapy. Providers shall deliver SUD Counseling/Therapy in certified SUD treatment programs or community settings. The following practitioners may provide SU…

CORE SERVICE: DRUG SCREENING Drug Screening consists of toxicology sample collection and breathalyzer and urine testing to determine and detect the use of alcohol and other drugs. Providers must have their own drug screening policy. Toxicology sample collection involves the colle…

CORE SERVICE: RECOVERY SUPPORT RSS are strength-based supports for those with addictions and those in recovery from SUD. These services are provided to assist clients with implementation of their recovery plan through direct contact interventions provided to an individual or a gr…

SPECIALTY SERVICE: MEDICATION MANAGEMENT Medication Management shall include the coordination and evaluation of medications consumed by clients, monitoring potential side effects, drug interactions, compliance with doses, and efficacy of medications. Medication Management also in…

6346 MEDICATIONS FOR SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER 6346.1 MSUD is the use of FDA-approved medications in accordance with the client’s Plan of Care for the treatment of SUD, including OUD. OTPs shall not preclude clients who refuse SUD Counseling/Therapy from receiving MSUD. Providers sh…

SPECIALTY SERVICE: ADOLESCENT — COMMUNITY REINFORCEMENT APPROACH Adolescent – Community Reinforcement Approach (“ACRA”) is a specialty service that is provided in conjunction with Level 1 or Level 2.1 Outpatient treatment as a more targeted approach to treatment for youth and you…

SPECIALTY SERVICE: TRAUMA RECOVERY AND EMPOWERMENT MODEL Trauma Recovery and Empowerment Model (“TREM”) is a structured group therapy intervention designed for clients who have survived trauma and have substance use disorders and/or mental health conditions. TREM draws on cogniti…

RECOVERY SUPPORT – EVALUATION, ALCOHOL OR DRUG ASSESSMENT A Recovery Support Evaluation is a process used to evaluate and document a client’s individual recovery support service needs, develop a comprehensive individual Recovery Support Plan, and monitor client progress on achiev…

ENVIRONMENTAL STABILITY, SUPPORTED HOUSING 6350.1 The Environmental Stability service provides a structured and stable living environment and recovery support system that includes recovery housing for up to six (6) months. The objective of Environmental Stability is to prepare th…

6351 BEHAVIORAL HEALTH ACCREDITATION 6351.1 Effective October 1, 2023, all SUD providers shall obtain and maintain in good standing behavioral health accreditation with at least one (1) of the following organizations: the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (…

6352 SPECIALTY SERVICE: MOTIVATIONAL ENHANCEMENT THERAPY AND COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY 6352.1 MET/CBT is a short-term intervention designed for children/youth with cannabis use disorders to increase their motivation to change a substance use behavior and the underlying thought…

[REPEALED] SOURCE: Final Rulemaking published at 62 DCR 12056 (September 4, 2015); as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 67 DCR 011585 (October 9, 2020). District of Columbia Municipal Regulations Mental Health 22-A DCMR § 6353 AUTHORITY: DC-DCMR Sections 5113, 5115, 5117, …

6399 DEFINITIONS 6399.1 Admission – Entry into the SUD treatment or recovery support services program after completion of Initial Diagnostic Assessment and a determination that an individual is eligible for the program. Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (“APRN”) – A person licen…

6400 PURPOSE 6400.1 This chapter establishes the reimbursement rate for services provided to eligible District residents ages twenty-one (21) and older by Department of Behavioral Health (Department) certified substance use disorder providers, as this term is defined in Chapter 6…

6401 REIMBURSEMENT RATE 6401.1 The Department of Health Care Finance has published rates for Medicaid-funded services under Title 22-A District of Columbia Municipal Regulations (DCMR), Chapter 63. Those rates are contained in the District of Columbia Medicaid fee schedule availa…

6402 REIMBURSEMENT RATE FOR CLIENTS WHO ARE DEAF OR HARD-OF-HEARING 6402.1 Reimbursement for the local-only substance use services provided under Title 22-A DCMR Chapter 63, which include: (a) Multi-systemic Therapy for Transition Age Youth and (b) Environmental Stability, as wel…

6403 ADDITIONAL REIMBURSEMENT REQUIREMENTS 6403.1 The following provisions apply to the reimbursement of substance user disorder (SUD) providers billing the Department or the Department of Health Care Finance pursuant to this chapter, except where otherwise noted. 6403.2 Reimburs…

6500 GENERAL PROVISIONS 6500.1 The Department of Behavioral Health (Department) is the state authority with the responsibility to plan, develop, coordinate, and monitor comprehensive and integrated behavioral health systems of care for adults and for children, youth, and their fa…

6501 ELIGIBILITY FOR TRANSITION PLANNING SERVICE 6501.1 To be eligible for the Medicaid-funded transition planning service, individuals shall meet the following requirements: Be: A child or youth with mental health problems, as defined in D.C. Official Code § 7-1131.02(1F); An ad…

6502 PROVIDER CERTIFICATION PROCESS 6502.1 The Department shall utilize the certification process to thoroughly evaluate the applicant’s capacity to provide a high quality transition planning service in accordance with this Chapter and the needs of the District’s behavioral healt…

6503 EXEMPTIONS FROM CERTIFICATION STANDARDS 6503.1 Upon good cause shown, the Department may exempt an applicant or current transition planning provider from a certification standard, if the exemption does not: Jeopardize the health and safety of clients/consumers and/or staff, …

6504 DENIAL OR DECERTIFICATION PROCESS 6504.1 The Director may deny initial certification if the applicant fails to comply with any certification standard or the application fails to demonstrate the applicant’s capacity to deliver a high quality transition planning service on a s…

6505 NOTICES OF INFRACTION 6505.1 The Department may issue an NOI for any violation of this chapter. The fine amount for any NOI issued under this chapter shall be as follows: For the first (1st) offense, five hundred dollars ($500.00); For the second (2nd) offense, one thousand …

6506 PROVIDER DISCONTINUATION OF SERVICES 6506.1 A transition planning provider shall provide written notification to the Department at least ninety (90) calendar days before its discontinuation of the transition planning service, or immediately upon knowledge of an impending dis…

6507 GENERAL TRANSITION PLANNING PROVIDER STANDARDS 6507.1 No person or entity shall apply for certification, and no transition planning provider shall apply for recertification or be permitted to maintain certification as a transition planning provider, if they are: Not enrolled…

6508 CLIENT/CONSUMER RIGHTS AND PROTECTIONS 6508.1 Each transition planning provider shall establish and adhere to policies and procedures related to client/consumer rights and protections, including obtaining informed consent from clients/consumers and addressing complaints and …

6509 CONFIDENTIALITY, CONTENTS, AND MANAGEMENT OF CLIENT/CONSUMER RECORDS 6509.1 A transition planning provider shall create and maintain a record that meets the standards described in §§ 6509.3 and 6509.4 for each client/consumer who was referred to them, regardless of whether t…

6510 TRANSITION PLANNING STAFFING AND SUPERVISION STANDARDS 6510.1 A transition planning provider shall have the necessary expertise to deliver a high quality service to eligible individuals in each of the three (3) populations described in § 6501.1(a). 6510.2 A transition planni…

6511 TRANSITION PLANNING SERVICE COMPONENTS 6511.1 The transition planning service provides individuals not otherwise connected to care coordination or case management programs with similar support prior to being discharged from certain institutional treatment settings into lower…

6512 MAJOR UNUSUAL INCIDENT REPORTS 6512.1 A transition planning provider shall immediately notify the Department of any major unusual incident that may adversely affect the health, safety, or welfare of the client/consumer to whom they are rendering the transition planning servi…

6513 BEHAVIORAL HEALTH ACCREDITATION 6513.1 Effective October 1, 2023, all transition planning providers shall obtain and maintain in good standing behavioral health accreditation with at least one (1) of the following organizations: the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitat…

6599 DEFINITIONS When used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meaning ascribed: Adult Substance Abuse Rehabilitative Services (ASARS) Provider – A provider certified in accordance with 22-A DCMR Chapter 63 who delivers rehabilitative services for SUD as covered b…

7300 PURPOSE AND APPLICATION 7300.1 These rules establish the Department of Behavioral Health’s (Department) requirements for training and certifying Peer Specialists (“Certified Peer Specialists”), who will be employed by Department-certified community mental health agencies to …

7301 GENERAL PROVISIONS 7301.1 The Department’s Office of Consumer and Family Affairs (OCFA) shall administer the certified peer specialist certification program (Certification Program). 7301.2 The Certification Program consists of structured training designed to provide applican…

7302 PEER SPECIALIST CERTIFICATION COMMITTEE 7302.1 The Department shall establish a Peer Specialist Certification Committee (PSCC). 7302.2 The PSCC shall be comprised of nine (9) members. Four (4) of the members of PSCC shall be mental health consumers (Consumer Members), at lea…

7303 CORE COMPETENCIES 7303.1 The Department’s peer specialist certification program is structured to provide participants with an opportunity to develop the following core competencies: Interpersonal skills; Practical assessment skills and fundamental knowledge of mental health …

7304 PEER SPECIALIST QUALIFICATIONS Eligible applicants for the Peer Specialist Certification training shall: Be a District resident who is at least eighteen (18) years of age; Have at least a high school diploma or a general equivalency diploma (GED); and Be either A self-disclo…

7305 APPLICATION PROCESS 7305.1 Applicants must submit a completed application to the OCFA in the format prescribed by the Department. The OCFA, in consultation with the PSCC shall announce when it is accepting applications. The application shall include: Evidence of education, w…

7306 CODE OF ETHICS 7306.1 The Department has adopted a code of ethics for Certified Peer Specialists. Each Certified Peer Specialist is required to comply with the code of ethics and shall sign a copy of the code of ethics. 7306.2 The code of ethics includes the following princi…

7307 REQUIRED CLASSROOM TRAINING 7307.1 All candidates must complete the seventy (70) hours of required classroom training. The required classroom training is delivered in modules by instructors designated by the Department or equivalent approved by the PSCC. Classroom training s…

7308 FIELD PRACTICUM SUPERVISION AND ACTIVITIES 7308.1 Completion of the classroom work described in Section 7307 is a pre-requisite to participating in the eighty (80) hour field practicum, conducted in accordance with this section and with Department field practicum guidelines.…

7309 CERTIFICATION EXAMINATION 7309.1 Participants who have successfully completed the required classroom work and field practicum are eligible to take the certification examination. Participants who have received a full waiver of the classroom work and the field practicum are al…

7310 AWARDING OF PEER SPECIALIST CERTIFICATION 7310.1 The OCFA shall verify that applicants have: Successfully completed the required classroom work; Successfully completed a field practicum; Received a passing score on the certification examination; and Signed the Peer Specialis…

7311 MAINTAINING CERTIFICATION AND CONTINUING EDUCATION 7311.1 Certified Peer Specialists shall complete at least twenty (20) hours of continuing education units (CEUs) within the two (2)-year certification period to maintain certification and be eligible for recertification. 731…

7312 RECERTIFICATION PROCESS 7312.1 OCFA shall send a notice to each Certified Peer Specialist about the pending expiration of his or her certification at least one hundred twenty (120) days prior to expiration. 7312.2 A Certified Peer Specialist shall submit an application for r…

7313 REVOCATION OF CERTIFICATION 7313.1 The Department may elect to revoke certification as a Certified Peer Specialist for the same circumstances stated in Subsection 7312.5, including: (a) Violation of any principles of the code of ethics as set forth in Section 7306; (b) Failu…

7314 CERTIFIED PEER SPECIALIST SUPERVISION 7314.1 Certified Peer Specialists shall participate on the treatment team and provide those components of MHRS identified in Chapter 34 of this subtitle as services that may be delivered by credentialed staff. 7314.2 A qualified practiti…

7399 DEFINITIONS 7399.1 When used in this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings ascribed: Applicant – a person who has submitted an application to participate in the Peer Specialists Certification Program. Candidate – an applicant whose application to p…

7600 PURPOSE AND APPLICATION 7600.1 These rules establish an Officer-Agent Certification Committee and the requirements for individuals to become certified Department of Mental Health (DMH) Officer-Agents in the District of Columbia. 7600.2 These rules apply to DMH and other Dist…

7601 GENERAL PROVISIONS The Department of Mental Health (DMH) certifies eligible individuals as accredited Officer-Agents in the District of Columbia. An Officer-Agent has the authority, when there is reason to believe that a person is mentally ill and, because of such illness, i…