🚨 CBC News Feature: “Three-strikes rule for psychologist licensing exam in Alberta faces opposition” CBC News Edmonton Segment
Today, our campaign was featured by CBC News, highlighting the harm caused by Alberta’s punitive licensing policy—and the courageous voices fighting back.
A special thank you to Brenda, a counselling therapist and member of Paul First Nation, for bravely sharing her story. After completing years of education, ethics training, and supervised hours, she was permanently deregistered under the policy after her final EPPP attempt in 2023. Brenda had hoped to serve her community as one of the few Indigenous psychologists in Canada. Instead, she's been shut out of the profession—and cannot bill many First Nations clients due to the limitations of her current title.
“They’re messing with people’s careers and lives by putting so much weight on one exam.”
— Brenda D, CBC News
🧾 What CAP Claimed in the Article and the Reality:
🔹 “It’s not a new policy.”
➡️ False. The lifetime deregistration rule only came into effect in 2023. Prior versions allowed reapplication or remediation. This change was a major escalation—and the most restrictive policy in Canada.
🔹 “It protects the public”
➡️ The EPPP is a written, U.S.-based multiple-choice exam. It does not assess clinical competence, ethics, or cultural responsiveness—yet CAP is using it as the sole gatekeeper to practice.
➡️ As Dr. Suzanne Stewart told CBC, the exam is culturally biased and inaccessible for many equity-deserving professionals.
➡️ If this exam genuinely "protected the public," could you please explain why other provinces permit more attempts, appeals, or have no cap at all? Provinces such as Ontario, Saskatchewan, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland & Labrador have acknowledged the detrimental impact of a uniform approach on the profession. Alberta remains the only province in Canada with a permanent ban after three attempts.
🔹 “Only 1.6% are affected” (based on 8-year data)
➡️ This number is deeply misleading. The current lifetime cap policy has only been in place for 2.5 years, yet multiple professionals have already been permanently deregistered.
➡️ CAP is using a projected low failure rate to justify keeping a permanent ban in place—as if it's acceptable as long as it only destroys a “small percentage” of careers.
➡️ Even if the number is small, the real people impacted are disproportionately racialized, disabled, immigrant, and neurodivergent professionals—exactly the voices psychology needs more of.
➡️ A low percentage doesn’t make the policy ethical, fair, or justified. In fact, it reveals how easily CAP is willing to write off those who don’t fit a narrow mold.
🔹 “There will be a reapplication option after 5 years and a PhD”
➡️ This is not posted publicly and was not communicated to impacted individuals. The timing is no coincidence:
📌 CAP is delaying all formal response to our petition until after September 26—the same date their new bylaw is set to be quietly implemented.
📌 Under this "cooling-off" option, deregistered individuals must start over completely, earn a doctorate, and reapply with no guarantee of reinstatement. That’s not remediation. It’s exclusion disguised as reform.
📌 CAP barred the media and public from attending the July 25 Council meeting wherethe issues was discussed.
📌 Meeting minutes will not be released until after September 26—delaying transparency and accountability while they finalize their policy change.
✊ What You Can Do Right Now:
✅ Read & share the CBC article and petition widely
✅ Encourage others to sign the petition and contact their MLA.
✅ Demand CAP repeal this policy—not rebrand it. Remediation should not require 5 years and a PhD.
✅ Email us at albertapetitioneppp@gmail.com if you’ve been impacted or want to help organize.
We see what CAP is doing. We will not be quiet until this policy is repealed. They can delay the minutes. They can delay the response. But they cannot delay fairness if we keep going!
In solidarity,
📩 albertapetitioneppp@gmail.com