Oklahoma § 59-1378 - Legislative findings

§ 59-1378. Legislative findings

The Oklahoma Legislature makes the following findings:

States license psychologists in order to protect the public

through verification of education, training and experience and

ensure accountability for professional practice.

This Compact is intended to regulate the day-to-day practice of

telepsychology, which is the provision of psychological services

using telecommunication technologies, by psychologists across state

boundaries in the performance of their psychological practice as

assigned by an appropriate authority.

This Compact is intended to regulate the temporary in-person,

face-to-face practice of psychology by psychologists across state

boundaries for thirty (30) days within a calendar year in the

performance of their psychological practice as assigned by an

appropriate authority.

This Compact is intended to authorize state psychology

regulatory authorities to afford legal recognition, in a manner

consistent with the terms of the Compact, to psychologists licensed

in another state.

This Compact recognizes that states have a vested interest in

protecting the public's health and safety through their licensing

and regulation of psychologists and that such state regulation will

best protect the public health and safety.

This Compact does not apply when a psychologist is licensed in

both the home and receiving states.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 59. Professions and Occupations

This Compact does not apply to permanent in-person, face-to-face

practice, but it does allow for the authorization of temporary

psychological practice.

Consistent with these principles, this Compact is designed to

achieve the following purposes and objectives:

1. Increase public access to professional psychological

services by allowing for telepsychological practice across state

lines, as well as temporary in-person, face-to-face services, into a

state in which the psychologist is not licensed to practice

psychology;

2. Enhance the states' ability to protect the public's health

and safety, especially client/patient safety;

3. Encourage the cooperation of the compact states in the areas

of psychology licensure and regulation;

4. Facilitate the exchange of information between the compact

states regarding psychologist licensure, adverse actions and

disciplinary history;

5. Promote compliance with the laws governing psychological

practice in each compact state; and

6. Invest all compact states with the authority to hold

licensed psychologists accountable through the mutual recognition of

compact state licenses.

Added by Laws 2019, c. 187, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2019.