Written for owners and clinical leads who went looking for Wyoming’s application to license an addiction or mental health program and came back empty handed. There is a reason for that, and it changes how you plan an opening here.
Additional Wyoming Licensing Guides
- Wyoming Drug and Alcohol Inpatient Treatment Licensing
- Wyoming Drug and Alcohol Outpatient Treatment Licensing
- Wyoming Mental Health Inpatient Licensing
- Wyoming Mental Health Outpatient Licensing
- Wyoming License Reinstatement
No Program License, but a Hard Line on Court Referrals
We took the statute numbers and quoted wording here from Wyoming’s official statute titles and from the Department of Health’s own rules, pages and March 2026 certification handbook. Conclusions the text leaves unstated are flagged as ours.
Wyoming licenses health care facilities under W.S. 35-2-901 to 35-2-914, and the statute spells out exactly what counts as one. The list in 35-2-901(a)(x) runs from ambulatory surgical centers and assisted living facilities through hospice, hospital and nursing care facility to renal dialysis center. A residential addiction program is not on it. Neither is a residential mental health home, an intensive outpatient program or a counseling clinic. Psychiatric care shows up only inside the hospital definition, and the statute defines it as “the in-patient care and treatment of persons with a mental diagnosis.” Our reading is that Wyoming has no state license at all for a freestanding substance use or mental health treatment program, and the 35-2-901(b) carve-out for a licensed person “providing health care services within the scope of his license in a private office” points the same way for office practices.
What the state runs instead is certification, through the Wyoming Department of Health, Behavioral Health Division (BHD). Its legal footing is W.S. 9-2-2701, and the sentence in that statute that matters most to a private operator is this one: “courts shall not refer individuals for substance abuse or related treatment to programs, providers or facilities which are not certified to provide those services for which the individual is referred.” BHD’s certification page lists the triggers: substance use disorder assessments for court-ordered or referred clients, state money for substance use services, and community mental health center services. The same statute bars state treatment funds to uncertified programs.
The court referral piece is where Wyoming gets strict. Under Chapter 2, Section 2 of the Division’s rules, “If a substance use disorder residential treatment services provider provides services to court-ordered clients the provider must be nationally accredited for substance use disorder residential treatment services.” Chapter 1 limits national accreditation to The Joint Commission, CARF or NIAHO. COA is not on the list. An outpatient program taking court clients may choose accreditation or the state’s own standards in Chapter 2, Sections 8 to 14.
So what does a private-pay program actually need? In our reading, clinicians licensed by the Mental Health Professions Licensing Board or another board, a DEA registration and a Wyoming Board of Pharmacy controlled substance registration for each location if it handles controlled substances (W.S. 35-7-1024), and whatever business filing, zoning and building approvals its city or county requires, which are local matters rather than Department of Health ones. Add certification, and for residential care accreditation, the day it wants court-ordered clients. The BHD handbook confirms the mental health half plainly: “The Division does not currently issue certification for non-contracted mental health providers.”
Primary Regulatory Agencies
What each office does is described the way its own website or governing rule describes it.
- Wyoming Department of Health, Behavioral Health Division, certification program, which certifies substance use disorder providers and state funded behavioral health centers under W.S. 9-2-2701 and the Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Services rules, reachable at (307) 777-5253 or wdh-certification@wyo.gov
- Wyoming Department of Health, Aging Division, Healthcare Licensing and Surveys (HLS), which licenses health care facilities under W.S. 35-2-901 to 35-2-914, psychiatric hospitals and general hospitals with psychiatric units among them, at (307) 777-7123
- Wyoming Mental Health Professions Licensing Board, created in 1987, which licenses and certifies addictions therapists and practitioners, professional counselors, marriage and family therapists and social workers
Wyoming Behavioral Health Licensing Snapshot
The Sources list at the bottom carries the statute, rule or agency page behind each line of this table, and the entries saying no license exists are our reading of the W.S. 35-2-901 facility list.
| Primary SUD Regulator | No SUD facility license exists. BHD certifies SUD providers that take court-ordered or referred clients or state funds |
| Mental Health Facility Licensing | HLS licenses psychiatric hospitals (Health Quality rules, Chapter 15) and hospitals with inpatient psychiatric units (HLS rules, Chapter 12). BHD does not certify non-contracted mental health providers |
| Residential Treatment | No state license. BHD certification at ASAM 3.1, 3.5 or 3.7, with mandatory national accreditation, if the program serves court-ordered clients |
| Outpatient Treatment | No state license. BHD certification needed to assess or treat court-ordered or referred SUD clients, with accreditation or the Chapter 2 state standards |
| Withdrawal Management | No separate state facility category found. ASAM 3.7 and 4.0 appear among BHD certification service selections |
| Facility License Required | Only for hospitals and psychiatric hospitals, from HLS. W.S. 35-2-909 makes it a misdemeanor to run an unlicensed health care facility |
| Certificate of Need | None. The last bed expansion limits were repealed by 2025 HB0289 (Chapter 102), effective July 1, 2026 |
| National Accreditation | The Joint Commission, CARF or NIAHO only. Deemed to meet BHD’s Section 8 standards. Required for SUD residential serving court-ordered clients. Accredited hospitals renew without state inspection under W.S. 35-2-907 |
| Inspection | BHD review may include an on-site inspection. HLS issues a provisional hospital license, then surveys unannounced after a written request |
| License Renewal | BHD: six month provisional certification, then six months to three years, renewal filed at least 30 days ahead. HLS: one year, July 1 to June 30 |
| Key Regulations | W.S. 9-2-2701, W.S. 35-2-901 to 35-2-914, WDH Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Services Rules Chapters 1 to 5, 7 and 8, Health Quality Chapter 15 (psychiatric hospitals), HLS Chapter 12 (hospitals), W.S. 33-38 (counselor licensing) |
What a Wyoming Program Needs, Program by Program
This comparison is ours, not the Department’s. It pulls together the statutes and rules cited above, and every “none found” entry reflects our reading of them.
| Program | State license | BHD certification | National accreditation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Residential SUD, private pay only | None found | Not required | Not required by the state |
| Residential SUD serving court-ordered clients | None found | Required | Required: Joint Commission, CARF or NIAHO |
| Outpatient or intensive outpatient SUD, private pay only | None found | Not required | Not required |
| Outpatient SUD with court-ordered or referred clients | None found | Required | Optional. Chapter 2 state standards apply without it |
| Outpatient mental health | None. Clinicians practice on their own licenses | Not issued to non-contracted providers | Not required |
| Residential mental health outside a hospital | No category found | Not issued to non-contracted providers | Not required by the state for a private program |
| Psychiatric hospital, or a psychiatric unit inside a hospital | HLS license, $1,000 a year for a psychiatric or general hospital ($500 for a critical access hospital) | Not applicable | Optional, and lets a hospital renew without state inspection |
Wyoming’s ASAM levels live inside BHD certification. Placement follows the ASAM criteria, the adult Fourth Edition took effect for certified providers on July 1, 2026, and 3.1, 3.5 and 3.7 are among the residential services a provider picks when it applies. Separately, CARF runs an ASAM Level of Care Certification whose scope, per CARF and ASAM’s page, reaches only three levels of adult residential care, 3.1, 3.5 and 3.7. Withdrawal management is not offered under it. No Wyoming rule we read asks for it either. A residential program already accredited by The Joint Commission, CARF or NIAHO so it can take court-ordered clients could add it as outside evidence of its level, and anyone checking a claim can filter CARF’s Find a Provider tool by Certification for “ASAM Level of Care 3.7”, 3.1 or 3.5. In our reading it would not appear on a BHD certificate.
Programs Covered
- Residential substance use treatment for adults, private pay or court referred
- Outpatient and intensive outpatient substance use treatment
- Outpatient mental health practices and group clinics
- Psychiatric hospitals and general hospitals with inpatient psychiatric units
- Residential mental health care, where Wyoming offers no license category outside a hospital
Key Licensing Requirements
Drawn from BHD’s New Provider Certification Application Checklist (08.2026), Chapter 2 of its rules and the HLS psychiatric hospital pages.
- For certification, an online application in the Behavioral Health Management System, completed within 90 calendar days, with accreditation status, ASAM services, business authority, articles or bylaws, liability insurance, staff licenses and a policy and procedure manual written to Chapter 2, Section 9(b)
- For an accredited applicant, its most recent survey report and award letter, plus any sentinel event or major unusual incident reports
- For a residential SUD program taking court-ordered clients, accreditation from The Joint Commission, CARF or NIAHO before it relies on those referrals
- For a psychiatric hospital, the HLS State Initial-CHOW License Application, the $1,000 fee by check, engineer review of the building and a provisional license before the survey
- Counselors credentialed under W.S. 33-38 as an LAT, CAP or CAPA, or licensed as an LPC, LMFT or LCSW
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Wyoming charge to approve a behavioral health program?
For a freestanding program, as far as we can find, nothing. We read Chapter 2 of the Division’s certification rules in full and searched its 47 page handbook, and neither sets a certification fee. There is also no state program license to pay for. The one priced item is a hospital license from Healthcare Licensing and Surveys, where W.S. 35-2-904 sets $1,000 for a psychiatric hospital, paid by check, with the full fee owed for each July 1 license year even when the facility opens partway through it. Where the money really goes is buildout, policies, accreditation and payroll. We do not put a single dollar range on a Wyoming opening, because buildout varies too much from one town and building to the next. Payroll is the line public data can price, and the staffing question below does that.
What timeline should a Wyoming opening plan around?
The Division must approve or deny a completed certification application within 30 calendar days under Chapter 2, Section 4, and an application left unfinished in the BHMS portal for 90 days is rejected. New providers start on a six month provisional certification. For an outpatient program with its policies already written, we estimate one to three months to certification. A residential program that will serve court-ordered clients has to be accredited first, and we plan 9 to 15 months for that route because accreditation survey timing sets the pace. Both figures are our estimates. We found no statutory decision deadline for a psychiatric hospital license.
What do operators get wrong about Wyoming?
Hunting for a program license that does not exist, then concluding certification never matters. It matters the moment a program wants court-ordered or court-referred substance use clients, which in our experience is where many Wyoming addiction programs get a large share of referrals. The second mistake is picking COA as the accreditor. Wyoming’s rule defines national accreditation as The Joint Commission, CARF or NIAHO, and COA is not among them. A third is relying on older guidance that mentions a certificate of need. The last of it, a bed expansion limit for hospitals and nursing homes, was repealed by 2025 HB0289 effective July 1, 2026.
Can anyone promise a Wyoming approval?
No. The Division decides certification, the accreditor decides accreditation, and Healthcare Licensing and Surveys decides a hospital license. What can be controlled is the file itself: a certification application complete enough for the Division to act on within its 30 days, and policies that already meet the accreditor’s standards before the surveyor arrives.
What will clinical staff cost a Wyoming program?
The May 2025 BLS OEWS release puts Wyoming’s substance abuse, behavioral disorder and mental health counselors at a $62,980 median. The 25th percentile sits at $46,300, the 75th at $80,310, and the national median is $59,350. Four counselors paid at that median cost $251,920 a year in base wages on our math, before benefits and any residential night shift. Wyoming’s credential ladder lets a program fill most of those seats with people still earning their hours. A Certified Addictions Practitioner practices under a qualified clinical supervisor, a Certified Addictions Practitioner Assistant qualifies with 270 contact hours of training and an exam, and an LAT, LPC or LCSW candidate must log 3,000 hours of supervised clinical experience, so a program whose clinical director supervises CAPs, CAPAs and provisional licensees, paid at their stage rather than at full-license rates, commonly cuts its counselor wage bill 40 to 60 percent below what a fully licensed staff would cost. If nursing is part of the model, our reading is that a single RN can direct a group of LPNs. How many beds, which ASAM levels and how many court referrals arrive will decide the real headcount.
Licensing
Is BHD certification the same thing as a license to operate?
No, and the Division’s own definitions say why. Chapter 1, Section 3 defines a “Provider” as “a provider of behavioral health services funded by the Department or a provider of substance use disorder services to persons referred or ordered to receive services by a court,” and certification is tied to that same group. A program outside both groups is outside the rule. That does not make certification minor. It is the only program-level approval Wyoming issues for these programs, it is what a court needs to see before it can refer a client, and once granted it carries real obligations: a policy manual built to Chapter 2, monthly clinical oversight for non-accredited providers, and accreditation reports passed to the Division. Our reading is that a private-pay program with no court clients can open without it, but we would confirm that with the certification program at (307) 777-5253 before you print a brochure.
Which accreditors count in Wyoming?
Three. Chapter 1, Section 3(a)(xx) says national accreditation “means accreditation issued by The Joint Commission (TJC), the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF), or National Integrated Accreditation for Healthcare Organizations (NIAHO).” Accreditation from one of them is deemed to satisfy the Section 8 state standards for both initial and renewal certification. In exchange, an accredited provider sends the Division every survey report and every report of a major unusual incident or sentinel event within 30 calendar days of filing it with the accreditor, when the Division asks, with proof the accreditor accepted it.
Does Wyoming have a certificate of need?
Not anymore, for anyone. The old New Institutional Health Services article was repealed in 1985 and 1987. What remained, bed expansion limits for hospitals and nursing care facilities in W.S. 35-2-906, went with 2025 HB0289, “Certificate of need repeal-3,” signed March 3, 2025 as Chapter 102 and effective July 1, 2026. A licensed hospital still submits plans to HLS for approval before construction starts.
Facility
Will the state visit a freestanding program?
Only if the program seeks certification, and even then it is discretionary. Chapter 2, Section 4 says “The Department’s review may include an on-site inspection and independent verification of national accreditation with the accrediting body, if applicable.” A psychiatric hospital gets a fuller sequence from HLS: engineer review of the building, a provisional license, then an unannounced survey that HLS schedules after the hospital is treating patients and requests one in writing.
Can a certified program add a level of care or change owners?
Adding a level is a paperwork step. The provider emails the signed Add a Level of Care Service form, a written request and its updated policy and procedure manual to wdh-certification@wyo.gov, or makes the request inside BHMS. A change of ownership is heavier, because Chapter 2, Section 7 says “A certification is non-transferable,” so the buyer applies as a new provider. Closing a program requires notice to the Division seven business days ahead.
Staffing
Which addiction credentials does Wyoming use?
Three tiers, all under W.S. 33-38-102 and 33-38-106. The Licensed Addictions Therapist holds a master’s or doctorate, passes the exam and completes 3,000 hours of supervised clinical experience, 100 of them face to face individual supervision, and, unlike the two certified tiers, is not tied by statute to a supervisor. The Certified Addictions Practitioner holds a qualifying bachelor’s degree, or another behavioral degree plus 2,000 hours of supervised work as a CAPA, and works under a qualified clinical supervisor. The Certified Addictions Practitioner Assistant needs 270 contact hours of education and training and an exam, and also works under supervision. CAP and CAPA candidates have six months from employment to become certified.
Do Wyoming’s rules set staffing ratios?
Not for substance use programs. We read Chapters 1 and 2 in full and found no medical director, nursing ratio or awake overnight requirement for residential care, so an accredited program will take its staffing standards from its accreditor. A certified provider without accreditation must have a qualified clinical supervisor overseeing clinical work, with no fewer than one contact a month. Psychiatric hospitals are different: Chapter 15 requires a Wyoming licensed physician as clinical director, an RN directing nursing who holds a psychiatric or mental health nursing master’s (or its equivalent) or is qualified by education and experience, and a pharmacy run by a registered pharmacist.
Operations
Must a Wyoming program offer medication for opioid use disorder?
No rule we read requires it. The Division’s rules define medication assisted treatment and list it as a service, and a non-accredited certified provider must keep “documentation of collaboration and attempts to collaborate with the MAT practitioner” in the record. DEA told registrants on January 12, 2023 that buprenorphine prescriptions require nothing beyond a standard DEA registration number. Methadone for addiction is the exception, since it is dispensed through opioid treatment programs under separate rules, and a Wyoming program whose client needs it sets up coordination with one.
Where do incident reports go?
It depends on the track. Accredited certified providers forward sentinel event and major unusual incident reports to BHD, when the Department asks, no later than 30 calendar days after filing them with the accreditor. We found no state incident deadline for a non-accredited certified provider. Hospitals and psychiatric hospitals report online through the HLS Incident Tracking System. Separately, W.S. 35-20-103 requires anyone who suspects abuse, neglect or exploitation of a vulnerable adult to report it “immediately to a law enforcement agency or the department.”
Enforcement
What can the Division do to a certified provider?
Chapter 2, Section 6 lists seven grounds to deny or revoke, among them missing accreditation where it is required, a condition of serious detriment to clients and a revocation within the prior three years. The Division may first offer a chance to correct: the provider has 10 business days to return a resolution plan and no more than 60 days to fix the problem, though that offer is not available where the problem is a serious detriment to clients. A provider that wants a hearing sends a written request by certified mail within 10 calendar days of the determination letter, and Chapter 8 sets the hearing no later than 40 calendar days after the request. Complaint investigations under Chapter 4 can end in decertification.
And for a hospital?
W.S. 35-2-905 lets HLS impose conditions, require a monitor at the owner’s expense, stop admissions, or deny, suspend or revoke a license, and a summary suspension carries a hearing within 10 days. Opening a health care facility without the license is a misdemeanor under W.S. 35-2-909, carrying a fine as high as $750, as much as six months of imprisonment, or both, and every calendar week it continues counts again. What comes after a decertification or a revoked license is laid out in Wyoming License Reinstatement.
Where We Fit in a Wyoming Project
Work we take on
Sorting out whether a program needs certification at all, preparing Joint Commission or CARF surveys for programs that must be accredited to take court-ordered clients, writing the Chapter 2 policy manual, assembling the BHMS application and, for hospital projects, the HLS license file.
Work we pass to others
State contracts, payer enrollment, billing and marketing. We are glad to suggest people who specialize in those.
Trying to decide whether your Wyoming program needs certification? Tell us about it.
Author: A. Ant, CADC-II, Licensing & Accreditation Expert
Disclaimer: This content is provided for general informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal, regulatory, or licensing advice. Requirements change frequently. Consult qualified professionals for guidance specific to your situation.
Sources
- Wyoming Statutes, Title 9, W.S. 9-2-2701 (certification, court referrals): Title 9 (PDF) (checked October 20, 2026)
- Wyoming Statutes, Title 35, W.S. 35-2-901 to 35-2-914, 35-7-1024 and 35-20-103: Title 35 (PDF) (checked October 20, 2026)
- Wyoming Statutes, Title 33, W.S. 33-38-102 and 33-38-106 (counselor credentials): Title 33 (PDF) (checked October 20, 2026)
- Wyoming Department of Health, Behavioral Health Division: Certification program and New provider certification (checked October 20, 2026)
- WDH Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Services Rules, Chapters 1 to 5, 7 and 8: Rules and regulations and Chapter 1 (PDF) and Chapter 2 (PDF) and Chapter 4 (PDF) and Chapter 8 (PDF) (checked October 20, 2026)
- BHD, Add a Level of Care Service form (01.2026): Form (PDF) (checked October 20, 2026)
- BHD, MHSA Certification Program Handbook (March 2026): Handbook (PDF) (checked October 20, 2026)
- BHD, New Provider Certification Application Checklist (08.2026): Checklist (PDF) (checked October 20, 2026)
- WDH Aging Division, Healthcare Licensing and Surveys: HLS home and Facility types (checked October 20, 2026)
- HLS, psychiatric hospital licensure information, checklist and application: Psychiatric hospital licensure and Checklist (PDF) and Initial and CHOW instructions (PDF) (checked October 20, 2026)
- HLS, healthcare facility incident reporting: Incident reporting (checked October 20, 2026)
- WDH Health Quality Rules, Chapter 15, Licensure of Psychiatric Hospitals: Chapter 15 (PDF) (checked October 20, 2026)
- HLS Rules, Chapter 12, Licensure of Hospitals (eff. March 1, 2023): Chapter 12 (PDF) (checked October 20, 2026)
- Wyoming Legislature, 2025 HB0289, Certificate of need repeal-3 (Chapter 102): Summary (PDF) and Digest (PDF) (checked October 20, 2026)
- Wyoming Mental Health Professions Licensing Board: Board home (checked October 20, 2026)
- DEA Diversion Control Division, Dear Registrant letter (January 12, 2023): DEA letter (PDF) (checked October 20, 2026)
- CARF and ASAM, Level of Care Certification, and CARF provider search: CARF Level of Care Certification and ASAM Level of Care Certification and CARF Find a Provider (checked October 20, 2026)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025, SOC 21-1018: Wyoming and National (checked October 20, 2026)