Bill to integrate counselling psychologists into Gesy heads to parliament

A bill seeking to integrate counselling psychologists into the national health system (Gesy) is expected to be brought before the parliamentary plenary session in the coming days, following discussions in the House health committee on Thursday.

The proposed legislation, promoted by Disy MP Charalambos Pazaros and Dipa MP Alekos Tryfonidis, would amend the general health insurance law so that counselling psychologists are formally recognised as “other health professionals” within the system, allowing them to provide services to Gesy beneficiaries.

Speaking after the committee meeting, Pazaros said the health insurance organisation (HIO) had signalled its willingness to examine the proposal and submit it to its board of directors for approval as a separate professional category within the system.

According to Pazaros, the initial integration would likely involve a limited package of services focusing on specific health conditions, with the possibility of gradual expansion depending on available funding.

“As counselling psychology can operate complementary to clinical psychology, it can manage cases that do not fall within the strict scope of clinical practice,” he suggested.

“In this way the system is decongested, waiting times are reduced and cases are distributed more effectively among professionals.”

He added that counselling psychologists could play a significant role in prevention and early intervention, as well as in supporting patients dealing with psychosocial challenges or chronic and difficult illnesses.

“Mental health is a fundamental pillar of overall health and well-being,” Pazaros insisted.

“Access to psychological support services must be universal, immediate and of high quality.”

Tryfonidis also stressed what he described as a “huge necessity” for the inclusion of counselling psychologists in Gesy, arguing that demand for such services is growing and that patients should not have to rely on private care to receive appropriate support.

“The goal is for citizens to be able to address counselling psychologists within the general health system without additional financial burden, as is currently the case,” he said.

Tryfonidis said the proposal has received positive reactions from the psychologist’s association (Pasypsy), the patients’ association (Osak) and the health ministry.

The renewed legislative push follows years of debate over the structure of mental health services under Gesy and criticism from professional bodies that the system has taken an overly clinical approach to psychological care.

When Gesy was introduced, psychiatrists and clinical psychologists were incorporated into the system first, with counselling psychologists expected to follow later as part of a broader mental health framework.

That step, however, never materialised, prompting repeated criticism from professional organisations.

Pasypsy warned as early as 2022 that the absence of counselling psychologists created gaps in the system’s ability to address less severe but still significant mental health needs.

It argued that the existing model focuses primarily on diagnosing and treating mental disorders rather than addressing the broader social and emotional pressures affecting people’s wellbeing.

Counselling psychologists typically work with individuals experiencing issues such as stress, relationship difficulties, grief, anxiety or adjustment to major life events.

Unlike psychiatrists, who can prescribe medication, or clinical psychologists who focus on diagnosing and treating mental illness, counselling psychologists often support individuals facing everyday psychological challenges that may not constitute a clinical disorder.

Professionals have argued that the absence of this specialisation from Gesy limits the range of services available to patients and forces many people to seek help privately.

According to psychologists’ organisations, this has effectively created two categories of patients, those able to access counselling through private therapy and those who rely solely on the services available within Gesy.

They also warn that the gap in services can lead to inappropriate referrals, with general practitioners sometimes directing patients to clinical psychologists or psychiatrists for issues that might be better addressed through counselling.