....hate:

This morning, the Tennessee House passed HB 1840/SB1556 by a vote of 68
to 22. This unnecessary bill would allow licensed counselors in private
practice to use their own religious beliefs as an excuse for terminating
care or referring away clients because of moral objections to how the
client identifies.

Representative John Ray Clemmons (D) lead a vigorous debate on the House
floor, proposing series of amendments to attempt to limit the harm of
this bill and ensure the protection of youth seeking counseling for
issues of bullying. One of these amendments would have forced counselors
to publicly state on their website and marketing materials if they
reserved the right to refuse counseling to someone. Another amendment
would have prevented counselors from charging a client for services if
the therapist then referred them away because of a religious refusal to
serve the client.

Speaking in support of these amendments, Rep. Clemmons eloquently stated
that “seeking help is hard enough� and he particularly pushed for two
different amendments that would protect children under the age of 18
from being refused if they sought counseling services for being bullied.
The focus of therapy, Rep. Clemmons stressed, is on the needs of the
client, not the counselors and those within the counseling profession
understand this important focus.

Extreme members of the legislature moved procedurally to limit
discussion to 2 minutes per member and shot down each attempt at
amendments by Rep. Clemmons and other House Democrats who stood up to
fight for the rights of those seeking counseling in a state which is
already underserved by mental health professionals.

The bill’s sponsor, *Rep. Howell (R)* continued to push for the
protection of the counselors at the expense of those they seek to
counsel. In the end, legislators passed HB1840/SB1556 without accepting
any of Rep. Clemmons amendments.

HB1840/SB1556 has been vigorously opposed many counseling professionals
and organizations in the state of Tennessee as well as the American
Counseling Association. The ACA sets the Code of Ethics and standards
for practice nationally and these are adopted by the state of Tennessee
as its standards for licensing counselors in the state. In a statement,
Art Terrazas, Director of Government Affairs at The American Counseling
Association said, “Passing this legislation is not only morally wrong
and a dangerous precedent, but could also result in costly unintended
consequences for Tennessee, including for the hundreds of thousands of
state residents who rely on accessible and professional counseling
services.�
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Ahh, more GOP/christian hatemongering...protect the counselors? From what?