Washington Revised Code Title 43. State Government--Executive § 43.101.520. Training program--Mental health and substance use disorder professionals treating first responders

(1) Subject to the availability of amounts appropriated for this specific purpose, the commission shall contract with an organization with expertise in mental health and substance use disorder counseling and treatment of first responders to develop and administer training for mental health and substance use disorder professionals to engender familiarity and cultural competency in the treatment of first responder clients.

(2) The contracting organization must consult with mental health professionals, substance use disorder professionals, law enforcement officers, corrections officers, firefighters, emergency services dispatchers or recordkeepers, and emergency medical personnel when developing the training.

(3) The contracting organization may develop the training to have in-person, virtual, and hybrid participation options to expand availability and accessibility of the training.

(4) The commission must direct the contracting organization to offer a set number of training opportunities annually as determined by the commission, provided free of charge, to mental health and substance use disorder professionals who are interested in treating first responder clients.

(5) For the purposes of this section, “first responder” has the same meaning as defined in RCW 5.60.060.