Bill
HB 697
Establishes licensure and a regulatory board for genetic counselors in North Carolina to standardize practice and protect patients.
Status / Introduction
- Bill title: NC Genetic Counselors Workforce Act (House Bill 697, Session 2025)
- Filed: April 2–3, 2025 (House filing and referral records)
- Referred to: Health; if favorable, Regulatory Reform; if favorable, Finance; then Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House.
- Current procedural status (from provided text): Early-stage House consideration / committee referral.
Purpose and intent
- Establish a licensure framework and regulatory board for genetic counselors in North Carolina. The bill seeks to define and regulate the practice of genetic counseling, set licensing standards, create an enforcement mechanism, and thereby promote safe, standardized delivery of genetic counseling services across the state.
Key provisions (summary of substantive elements)
- New statutory Article (Article 44) added to Chapter 90 (Occupations and Professions) to govern genetic counselor licensure.
- Definitions: establishes terms including “genetic counselor,” “genetic counseling intern,” “genetic testing,” ABGC (American Board of Genetic Counseling), ACGC (Accreditation Council for Genetic Counseling), ACS (Active Candidate Status), CEU, NSGC, “qualified supervisor,” “temporary license,” “reciprocity,” and “referral.”
- Genetic Counselors Licensure Board:
- Creates a five-member Genetic Counselors Licensure Board.
- Initial composition: two genetic counselor appointments recommended by General Assembly leaders and three Governor appointments (one genetic counselor, one physician, one public member). All members serve staggered three-year terms.
- Appointment rules: subsequent appointments by same authorities; members (except the public member) must be licensed and residents of North Carolina; no more than two consecutive terms.
- Governance: elect annual chair/vice-chair/secretary; meet at least twice annually; quorum is a majority.
- Ethics/Removal: enumerated grounds for removal (failure to meet qualifications, absenteeism, misconduct, felony convictions, malfeasance, incapacity).
- Compensation: no salary; per diem and travel expenses permitted; Board may hire staff.
- Board powers and duties (partial text provided):
- Administer and enforce the Article.
- Adopt rules.
- Set qualifications and fitness for licensure.
- Issue, renew, deny, suspend, revoke, or refuse licenses.
- Supervision and training:
- Defines “qualified supervisor” (licensed genetic counselor or physician).
- Defines supervision (regular meetings, chart review, annual supervision contract on file) and “supervisee” (temporary licensee).
- Provides for temporary licenses and reciprocity from other jurisdictions with substantially similar requirements.
- Licensing and practice scope:
- Genetic counseling is defined as services by a licensed individual to persons located in the State.
- Genetic testing definition focuses on analyses detecting genotypes, mutations, or chromosomal changes; selection of tests/labs must conform to Board-determined standards of care and ethics.
Who is affected
- Primary: practicing genetic counselors, genetic counseling interns, supervisors (licensed genetic counselors and physicians), and applicants seeking licensure or reciprocity.
- Secondary: health care providers who refer to or employ genetic counselors (physicians, advanced practice nurses, physician assistants), patients receiving genetic counseling, educational/ACGC-accredited training programs, payers and employers that use or credential genetic counselors.
- Regulators and state government: Department of Health and Human Services interactions and administrative oversight via the new Board.
Procedural / timeline notes and next steps
- At time of the provided text, HB 697 had been filed and referred to the House Health Committee (and downstream committees if favorable). Future steps include committee hearings, potential committee reports, floor votes in the House and then Senate, conference if amended, and gubernatorial action for enactment.
- Because portions of the bill text in the source are truncated, additional provisions (licensing criteria, fees, disciplinary procedures, continuing education requirements, exemptions, effective dates) may appear elsewhere in the full bill and will be important to review as the bill advances.
Potential impacts and considerations
- Establishes statutory recognition and a regulatory board for the profession — likely to increase standardization, consumer protections, and formal accountability for practice.
- Could impose licensure-related administrative requirements and costs for existing practitioners (licensure applications, potential supervision for temporary licensees, continuing education).
- Employers and payers may need to update credentialing and reimbursement policies to align with statute.
- Training programs and out-of-state practitioners would be affected by reciprocity rules and any supervised-practice requirements.
For more detail
- Consult the full text of Article 44 (Chapter 90), committee reports, and any subsequent amendments to see licensing requirements (education, examinations, fees), disciplinary processes, exemptions, and effective date provisions once available.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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