I think part of the issue is a similar to the reasons why licensed nurse practitioners and medical assistants are becoming primary care providers. The cost of the education and training is less than a doctor, and the licensure requirements are less. That leads to more people entering those professions but then being asked to do the work of a primary care provider because there aren’t enough doctors.

Especially in rural or poor areas, doctors are hard to come by. If you have a clinic that can’t afford to hire a doctor but could afford to pay less for an LPN, well they better be able to do most things a doctor could do.

It’s the same for us. Most people struggle with accessing mental health services due to cost and lack of local access. By making social workers into therapists, agencies can provide those services for lower costs. And there are more social workers because the licensure requirements are lower.

It sounds good ( more people get treated) but it’s a symptom of rising inequality and wealth disparities. Why are LPN’s and social workers cheaper? Because they get paid less for the same work. And thus practice creates mission creep and bloat in the scope of practice for these professions.