I'm writing to express my opposition to the Virginia Board of Counseling's current proposal that would require licensed counselors who graduated from CACREP-accredited programs to only require three years of post licensure experience whereas licensed counselors from non-CACREP-accredited programs would require ten years of post licensure experience.  There is no current evidence that counselors graduating from CACREP-accredited programs are better prepared than their peers who graduated from other programs.  Given the immense need for affordable mental health that licensed professional counselors can provide, this proposal risks harming the public good by limiting the number of licensed counselors who would qualify for licensure (and, therefore, professional counseling work) in the state of Virginia.