Health Insurance - Graduate-Level Clinical Interns - Required Reimbursement
HB1094 requires certain health insurers and nonprofit health service plans in Maryland to reimburse covered services provided by graduate-level clinical interns in counseling, social work, and psychology when those services would otherwise be reimbursable if performed by a licensed practitioner in that field. The bill amends the Insurance Article to add explicit reimbursement rights for services delivered by graduate interns in outpatient health care facilities, so long as the intern is enrolled in an appropriate graduate program, works under the required direct supervision, and the claim is billed by the supervising licensed professional.
The measure extends existing parity-style reimbursement rules that already apply to licensed counselors, social workers, and psychologists by clarifying that graduate-level interns can also generate reimbursable claims under specified conditions. It applies to individual, group, and blanket policies, contracts, and certificates issued, delivered, renewed, amended, or reissued in Maryland on or after January 1, 2027, and it takes effect on that date.
The bill amends Sections 15-704, 15-707, and 15-714 of the Maryland Insurance Article to require reimbursement for qualifying services provided by graduate-level counseling, social work, and psychology clinical interns. In practical terms, insurers must treat certain supervised intern-provided outpatient mental health services as covered when the underlying service is within the lawful scope of practice of the corresponding licensed profession and the billing and supervision requirements are met. The law affects insurers, nonprofit health service plans, outpatient behavioral health providers, graduate training programs, and patients receiving counseling, social work, or psychology services.
The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial. It passed the House 127-0 and the Senate 45-0, indicating unanimous approval in both chambers. No committee transcript or recorded debate is provided, but the voting history suggests consensus that the bill would improve access to reimbursable mental health services while maintaining supervision safeguards.
No notable opposition is reflected in the available record. The main policy details are the conditions attached to reimbursement: services must be provided in an outpatient setting, the intern must be enrolled in a graduate program, supervision must be direct and by a licensed professional meeting board-approved requirements, and billing must be submitted by the supervising clinician. Any potential concern would likely center on insurer costs, administrative compliance, or supervision standards, but none of these issues appear to have generated recorded contention in the available materials.