Certificate Issuance

Certificate Issuance A. Professional Identification 1. Individuals who make successful application for provisional certification will be awarded a time-limited, provisional certificate attesting to the title of: a. DMH “Provisionally Certified Mental Health Therapist” (PCMHT); b. DMH “Provisionally Certified Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Therapist” (PCIDDT); c. DMH “Provisionally Certified Community Support Specialist” (PCCSS) d. DMH “Provisionally Certified Substance Use Therapist” (PCSUT); or, e. DMH “Provisionally Certified Peer Support Specialist” (PCPSS). 2. Individuals who make successful application for certification/licensure will be awarded a full certificate/license attesting to the title of: a. DMH “Certified Mental Health Therapist” (CMHT); b. DMH “Certified Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Therapist” (CIDDT); c. DMH “Certified Community Support Specialist” (CCSS); d. DMH “Licensed Administrator” (LA); e. DMH “Certified Substance Use Therapist” (CSUT): or, f. DMH “Certified Peer Support Specialist” (CPSS). 3. CMHT, CIDDT, CSUT, CCSS, LA and CPSS credentials are renewable every two years. B. Date of Issuance 1. The credential date of issuance for initial applications will be the applicant’s date of hire, as reported by the state mental health system employer on DMH-prescribed application forms. (The employer must only report a single date of hire.) In order to receive this date of issuance, the initial application must be submitted online within 30 calendar days of the reported date of hire, and the application must be complete. (The employer-reported date of hire will be counted as Day One.) 2. “Initial application,” as referenced in this document, refers to provisional applications and applications submitted directly for full certification/licensure (thereby bypassing provisional certification), not upgrade applications. 3. Any applicant whose complete initial application is not submitted online within the 30- day time frame referenced above will receive as the credential date of issuance the date of the PLACE Review Board meeting at which the initial application was recommended for approval. 4. Upgrade applicants (i.e., provisionally certified individuals applying for upgrade to full certification) will have as their credential date of issuance the date immediately following the date of expiration of their respective provisionally certified credential, contingent upon favorable submission of the upgrade application within prescribed timelines and PLACE Review Board approval. 5. Provisional certification period extensions will not automatically be granted due to variations in dates of issuance. 6. The credential date of issuance for initial applications (defined above) may be the applicant’s date of transfer into a new position at the existing state mental health system employer, if the applicant has been promoted from a bachelor’s level position to a master’s level position within the same agency. The employer must report the date of transfer (rather than the date of hire) on the appropriate space on the DMH- prescribed application forms. (If the employer reports both the date of hire and the date of transfer, the date of hire will be used in calculating the credentialing date of issuance; only one date (date of hire or date of transfer) should be reported by the employer.) In order to receive this date of issuance, the initial application must be submitted online within 30 calendar days of the reported date of transfer, and the application must be complete. (The employer-reported date of transfer will be counted as Day One.) C. Certificates/Licenses 1. Wall certificates are issued via online download, upon credential approval by the PLACE Review Board and the DMH Executive Director. Wall certificate online accessibility is determined by the DMH and remains the property of DMH and must be surrendered upon request. 2. DMH intends that each individual hold only one certificate/license per professional title. DMH does not allow multiple original wall certificates/licenses within the same credentialing program. 3. Certificates issued by the DMH reflecting credentialing as PCMHT, PCIDDT, PCSUT, PCCSS or PCPSS are valid for up to a maximum two-year (24 consecutive months) Provisional Certification Period. Dates of provisional issuance and expiration vary from person to person. 4. An individual’s provisional certificate automatically becomes invalid once he/she has successfully upgraded to full certification; the individual will be allowed to download a certificate as a CMHT, CIDDT, CSUT, CCSS, or CPSS as appropriate. 5. Certificates/licenses issued by DMH reflecting credentialing as a CMHT, CIDDT, CSUT, CCSS, LA, or CPSS are valid for a maximum two–year Certification/Licensure Period established by the applicable Division. The issuance date is indicated on the certificate/license. Full certification/licensure timelines are addressed in Chapter Seventeen. Full certificates/licenses are renewable. 6. Individuals holding a DMH professional credential who are currently practicing in the state mental health system should maintain a copy of proof of certification/licensure in their personnel file. 7. Upon separation from state mental health system employment, the credentialed individual should notify the applicable Division accordingly, as outlined in Chapter Twenty. Unless the separating individual is reemployed with another state mental health system program or requests and receives an appropriate credential status change, the certificate/license is invalid. D. Replacement Certificate/License 1. Only individuals in good standing who are currently employed in the state mental health system (or in Inactive Status) may request a replacement certificate/license. 2. Upon written (or email) request and payment of the certificate/license replacement fee, an individual may be issued a replacement certificate/license in the case of a legal name change. In this case the following applies: a. Along with the request and the certificate/license replacement fee, the individual should also submit a copy of legal documentation of the name change. Legal documentation should be a copy of a social security card, marriage license or divorce decree indicating a representation of the newly requested name. Additionally, the request should indicate the new name as it should appear on the replacement certificate/license. b. Name changes reported at the time of an upgrade application do not have to be accompanied by a written (or email) request, a certificate/license replacement fee, or a copy of the legal documentation; this exemption does not apply to renewal applications. 3. Once the new replacement certificate/license is issued, the previous certificate/license immediately becomes invalid. Possession and utilization of two certificates/licenses for fraudulent purposes is grounds for disciplinary action, including possible loss of credentialing.