What we need to do is clear!

We must fight for reimbursement increases.

1/3 of psychologists no longer take insurance. Why? Stagnant and shrinking reimbursement. Addressing this must be a priority.

We must advocate for research funding, academic freedom, and job security for researchers and educators.

Science and our academic institutions are under attack. We must stand up for them and for our educators and researchers.

We need to breakup the student debt trap and open up Medicare to interns.

We need to search for innovative ways to reduce student debt and to keep students from accumulating more. Our students should be able to bill Medicare during their internships like physicians.

Let’s secure the time-free CPT codes that make physicians more efficient and that allow them to be reimbursed for the supervision they provide.

Psychologists need access to the same time-free E/M codes that reward physicians for the complexity, risk management, and responsibility they have for medical decision-making. We should also have access to the Incident To codes that allow reimbursement for the supervision we provide.

We need to lead with our science.

What is most unique about psychology? It’s science. We need to make it more visible, actively make it available, not just to the public, but within our professional ranks. Our members should have up-to-date access to our most cutting edge research. That means promoting the researchers and educators that make this possible.

Evolve the doctorate to include more market-relevant education in RxP, tech, business, administration, and law.

Professions evolve. Think nursing and the rise of nurse practitioners. Psychology impacts so many professions. Our students need the opportunity to access market-relevant, cross-disciplinary education in RxP, business, tech/computers, administration, and law, so that they can succeed in our current economy. Psychologists are often seen as having great potential as leaders. Let’s provide education in that. — all without increasing a student’s time in school.

We must keep our social justice commitments and find ways to communicate them that succeeds across our country’s many divides.

We know that our language can be weaponized and has. APA must help psychologists communicate these values in ways that reach more people, protect vulnerable communities, and succeed across different states and political realities.

The value of psychologists must be made unmistakable to the public, insurers, and employers.

This should be one of the primary tasks of an association supportive of psychologists. We need to show the value of psychologists, not just psychology.

We must unambiguously clarify the difference between a doctoral and master’s degree in psychology, social work, and counseling.

Psychologists need to be recognized for their superior skills in diagnosis, assessment, and the management of clinical and medical complexity. We are trained to look beneath symptoms, understand context, evaluate risk, integrate data, and distinguish between overlapping psychological, medical, developmental, cognitive, and social factors. That depth matters when patients present with trauma, chronic illness, substance use, suicidality, neurodevelopmental concerns, cognitive impairment, family stress, pain, disability, or complex comorbid conditions.

If we can’t clarify the difference between a master’s and doctoral degree, we shouldn’t expect insurance companies, employers, and the public to be able to.

Let’s help consulting psychologists compete more effectively.

Consulting psychologists bring psychological science into leadership, organizations, workplaces, courts, health systems, public agencies, and communities. But too often, they compete in markets that do not understand what makes psychological expertise different from coaching, HR consulting, or general management advice.

APA should help consulting psychologists define and market their value more clearly.

We must nurture our communities — the SPTAs and Divisions and support their financial well-being.

Our communities are our lifeblood. They need to be strong and represent the interests of members.

• Chuck is a three-time APA Fellow (D42, D31, D43).

• He helped write the Strategic Plan and was a leader on the Advocacy Coordinating Committee that advises APA’s Board of Directors on the association’s advocacy priorities.

• Karl F. Heiser Presidential Award winner for Advocacy in Behalf of Professional Psychology.

• Winner of Division 31’s Psychologist of the Year award. See picture above.

• He is CEO and Director of Professional Affairs for the Missouri Psychological Association. Under his leadership the association won both Division 31’s Most Outstanding SPTA award and its award for Outstand SPTA Diversity Program.

• He has encouraged the passage of over a dozen pieces of legislation in his state, including securing the H&B codes, parity for psychologists with psychiatry under Medicaid (only state in the country where this is true), a two-year limit on civil liability previously only enjoyed by physicians, PSYPACT, changes in the licensure act to make it easier for students to be licensed quicker, and protection for audio-only telehealth that benefited over a million Missourians.