On February 26, 2025, Anahit Baghshetsyan, Research Assistant with Nevada Policy, delivered compelling testimony before the Assembly Committee on Commerce and Labor in support of Assembly Bill 163. This legislation seeks to ratify Nevada’s entry into the Counseling Compact, an interstate agreement designed to ease occupational licensing requirements for clinical counselors in member states. This bill represents a critical intersection of mental health policy, workforce development, and interstate collaboration—offering a pragmatic solution to one of the state’s most pressing healthcare challenges.
Understanding the Counseling Compact
The Counseling Compact is an interstate licensure reciprocity framework, currently adopted by 37 states, that enables licensed professional counselors to practice in participating states without obtaining additional credentials. For Nevada, a state grappling with a persistent mental health care shortage, joining this compact could unlock immediate access to a broader pool of qualified professionals. This is particularly impactful as the legislation allows delivering services through telehealth – a means that would address the mental healthcare demand in the rural areas of the Silver State.
Nevada’s Mental Health Crisis: By the Numbers
Nevada’s mental health care system is under strain, and the data paints a stark picture. As of 2023, the state had only 478 licensed clinical professional counselors (CPCs), translating to a mere 14.6 counselors per 100,000 residents—well below the national average. Rural and frontier counties like Esmeralda, Eureka, Mineral, Lander and more report zero licensed CPCs, leaving entire regions without direct access to care. Meanwhile, demand for services is surging, driven by rising rates of anxiety, depression, and other behavioral health issues. Nevada Policy’s research underscores this mismatch, noting that the state consistently ranks among the lowest in the nation for mental health care availability—a trend that’s persisted since at least 2017, when Nevada had just 50.4 counselors per 100,000 residents compared to a national average of 181.
Barriers to Building a Workforce
A key contributor to this shortage is Nevada’s rigorous licensure process. Aspiring counselors must hold a graduate degree from a program accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) alongside residency hours during their educational program. Additionally, they must demonstrate proof of completion of 3,000 hours of supervised experience—including 1,500 hours of direct client contact and 300 hours of supervision—and pass the National Clinical Mental Health Counseling Examination (NCMHCE). This pathway, while ensuring competency, often takes 2-3 years post-graduation, creating a bottleneck that delays workforce entry. For policy-minded graduates, this highlights a classic regulatory trade-off: high standards versus accessibility.
The Compact as a Policy Solution
Baghshetsyan’s testimony emphasized the Counseling Compact as a proven, efficient fix. By recognizing licenses from other compact states, Nevada could tap into an existing network of counselors without diluting quality—participants must be in good standing and meet baseline professional standards. The state retains regulatory oversight, ensuring compliance with local laws while expanding capacity. This reciprocity model not only addresses immediate shortages but also enhances telehealth capabilities, a game-changer for rural Nevadans who face geographic isolation from services.
Implications for Policy Advocates
The Counseling Compact offers a case study in balancing innovation with oversight. It’s a low-cost, high-impact intervention that sidesteps the need for sweeping regulatory reform or massive budget increases—appealing to both fiscal conservatives and progressive advocates for equity in health care access. Nevada Policy’s advocacy before the Assembly Committee on Commerce and Labor highlights the role of evidence-based research in driving legislative change, a skill set in high demand among policy professionals.
Why It Matters Now
Nevada’s mental health crisis isn’t abstract—it’s a daily reality for residents, particularly in rural areas where resources are scarce. Joining the Counseling Compact could reposition Nevada from a perennial laggard in mental health care rankings to a state leveraging interstate partnerships for progress. For emerging policy leaders, supporting AB 163 means championing a solution that’s both practical and scalable, with the potential to influence broader workforce mobility debates.
In sum, Nevada Policy’s push for the Counseling Compact, as articulated in their testimony, is a strategic move to bolster the state’s mental health infrastructure. It’s a policy worth watching—and working on—for any graduate eager to shape Nevada’s future.
