Advocacy Priorities 2024

The Advocacy Committee is Here for You! 

LCCNC is a 501c6 nonprofit membership association founded in 1995 on one key principle: advocacy for the licensed clinical mental counseling profession. As the only North Carolina organization that lobbies on behalf of the entire clinical mental health counseling profession, LCCNC works diligently to advocate and promote, protect, and develop the scope of practice of North Carolina’s LCMHCs. 

Annually LCCNC develops an Advocacy Agenda to support and advance the public policy and legislative priorities for our profession. LCCNC values its members’ input to help direct the course of LCCNC Advocacy. The purpose of the LCCNC Advocacy Committee is to enact and support LCCNC’s mission: To promote the development of LCMHCs through advocacy and provide a voice for public policy, direct the activities of our professional lobbyist, and respond to the continuing education needs of LCMHCs in North Carolina. The Advocacy Committee works to increase public and political awareness of LCMHC's critical role as providers of comprehensive mental health counseling services across the lifespan.










LCCNC advocates for you, your profession, and those we


serve by:

  • Having a lobbyist to represent and advocate for the needs of LCMHCs and their clients at the North Carolina General Assembly.
  • Strategizing, providing comment and recommendations, and working with key stakeholders and partners.
  • Tracking and responding to legislation that is introduced during legislative sessions that affects the LCMHC profession.
  • Regularly attending meetings to stay involved with issues that legislators address.
  • Develop alliances and partnerships with stakeholders and organizations with mutual interests and common ground.
  • Attending monthly coalition meetings to be informed and up-to-date on issues that affect our profession.
  • Collect, address and respond to member concerns, and pressing issues and work to influence policy regarding those concerns.
  • Promote the LCMHC profession through the development of better policies and legislation.
  • Provide legislative and public policy updates impacting our profession. 
  • Our Association will monitor ongoing trends in Telehealth, Medicaid expansion, and COVID recovery legislation.



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2024 Advocacy Priorities

The Licensed Clinical Counselors of North Carolina (LCCNC) promotes, protects, and develops the practice of Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors (LCMHC). The Legislative Agenda is designed to support and advance the priorities of the LCMHC profession and scope of practice in adherence to the LCMHC Code of Ethics. 

 


  • Encourage North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NC DPI) to more fully utilize Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors to address mental health concerns in North Carolina schools. 


  • Increase opportunities for LCMHC’s to provide services to historically marginalized groups including NC citizens with chronic disabilities, both physical and/or mental.


  • Continue to support efforts affirming LGBTQIA+ human rights, equal access to community services, and the freedom to define individual identity choices through ongoing continuing education efforts. 


  • Support the advancement of evidence-based mental health treatment protocols to include exploration & research on non-traditional therapies (e.g., Psychedelic Assisted Therapies). 


  • Monitor, and collaborate as needed with, the NCBLMHC with regard to counseling licensure law and administrative rules to ensure scope of practice professional licensure needs are addressed, the public is protected, and the profession continues to advance positive mental health outcomes for all North Carolina’s citizens. This effort includes opposing efforts to include graduates of non-CACREP accredited programs a path to LCMHC licensure in North Carolina.


  • Collaborate with LCCNC clinical partner organizations to promote positive mental health treatment outcomes.


  • Update and inform membership on Interstate Compact Commission regarding implementation of Interstate Counseling Compact.


  • Support diversity and multicultural awareness in employment and clinical work settings plus counselor training sites through ongoing advocacy and networking opportunities.


  • Support the integration of mental health into primary care through interdisciplinary collaboration.