South Carolina § 40-55-310 - Purpose.

§ 40-55-310. Purpose.

(A) The Psychology Interjurisdictional Compact (Psypact) is enacted into law and entered into by the State of South Carolina with any and all other states legally joining therein in the form substantially as follows.

(B) The following principles form the basis for Psypact:

(1) States license psychologists, in order to protect the public through verification of education, training, and experience and ensure accountability for professional practice.

(2) This compact is intended to regulate the day-to-day practice of telepsychology, i.e., 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.

(3) This compact is intended to regulate the temporary in-person, face-to-face practice of psychology by psychologists across state boundaries for thirty days within a calendar year in the performance of their psychological practice as assigned by an appropriate authority.

(4) 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.

(5) 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 public health and safety.

(6) This compact does not apply when a psychologist is licensed in both the home and receiving states.

(7) While this compact does not apply to permanent in-person, face-to-face practice, it does allow for authorization of temporary psychological practice.

(C) Consistent with the principles set forth in subsection (B), 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 compact states in the areas of psychology licensure and regulation;

(4) facilitate the exchange of information between 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.

HISTORY: 2022 Act No. 159 (H.3833), SECTION 2.A, eff May 13, 2022.