The PEERiodical
October - December, 2025
A Quarterly Newsletter for Peer Support Specialists. Subscribe here.
We're Looking for Someone to Join Our Team!
Are you a person with lived experience who is passionate about supporting others in their recovery? We’re hiring a new Program Specialist to join the certification team at CalMHSA. Visit our Job Board for details and apply today!
Fee Waiver Recap
Partnering with DHCS, CalMHSA distributed fee waivers to support both new and existing Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialists for training, initial certification, and certification renewal.
New Trainings and Resources
To support peers’ professional development, CalMHSA has added three valuable trainings:
- Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialist Training en Español (in Spanish)
- A new provider has been approved and is now offering Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialist training in Spanish. We are proud to serve our Spanish-speaking community! Stay tuned to our Spanish courses page for the latest updates.
- Un nuevo proveedor ha sido aprobado y ahora ofrece entrenamiento para especialistas en apoyo entre pares en español. ¡Estamos orgullosos de servir a nuestra comunidad hispanohablante! Manténgase atento a nuestra página de cursos en español para conocer las últimas novedades.
- Ethics and Boundaries Course (No-Cost)
- Where might you begin to start with your law and ethics continuing education (CE) courses? Good question: We’ve launched a new Ethics & Boundaries training that offers two (2) CE credits, which can be used toward your certification renewal. This course is offered on our eLearning platform, CalMHSA Learns, and is available at no cost.
- Documentation Best Practices Guide (No Cost)
- Do you need a refresher on documentation? Check out our guide on Documentation Best Practices for Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialists!
Peer Hero Campaign
Across California, Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialists are transforming public behavioral health. They bring connection, empathy, and trust in a way that is truly transformational.
Throughout September, CalMHSA — in conjunction with DHCS — sponsored a statewide digital advertising campaign to raise awareness about the impact and role of Peers in behavioral health.
In addition to raising awareness, the campaign aimed to inspire more people to pursue certification. It uplifted the voices of real Certified Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialists, spotlighting their emotionally resonant stories to show how lived experience isn’t just valuable — it’s transformative. Learn more at www.peerhero.org.
You can continue to amplify the campaign’s important messaging with these resources —posts, graphics, backgrounds, and links to powerful videos that you can use on all your social media accounts. Simply download the graphics, copy and paste the captions, and post them to the social platform of your choice, and be sure to add our hashtag: #PeerHero.
Continuing Education Sources for Certification Renewal
Wondering if your recent training counts toward the 20-hour CE requirement for renewal?
Training sources that always meet requirement:
- Approved courses from CalMHSA-approved training agencies:
- Any courses not listed above must fall under both of the below categories on the Continued Education Hours web page.
- Acceptable Training, Education, Coursework
- Acceptable Sources
Have a tech challenge? We’re here to help you navigate common issues and keep your certification journey running smoothly. Check back each quarter for simple tips to troubleshoot like a pro!
Were You Given a Prepaid Voucher Code?
Make sure you apply it to your application so you can move forward with the certification process.
- Locate your application on capeercertification.org.
- Select “My Certification Application” on the left-side menu.
- Locate the box that reads “Payment” and select the green “PAY” button. A popup will show prompting you to pay.
- No need to enter your billing information. Enter your code in the “prepaid code” box at the bottom of the pop-up window.
- Click “Accept” to ensure the code is successfully applied.
- Check your email for your receipt.
This peer-to-peer space offers real-life wisdom from other Peer Support Specialists — real talk from peers like you can make all the difference. To share your tips, advice, or words of encouragement, email us at peercertification@calmhsa.org.
Calling all Poetic Peers!
Our team is taking submissions for original haiku poetry. We want to hear your haiku conveying your experience as a peer, as a peer support specialist, as a Certified Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialist, etc. Please send us your best haiku submissions to PeerCertification@calmhsa.org. We are accepting these submissions until Jan. 31, 2026. Select submissions will be featured in the quarterly PEERiodical newsletters in 2026.
Note: a haiku is a three-line poem with a 5, 7, 5 syllable structure.
What Our Certified Peers Are Saying
We’ve heard from peers around the state about how certification is making a difference in their lives. Here’s what some of them are saying:
- “Receiving the CalMHSA scholarship for the PSS program was truly life changing for me. It helped me turn my passion for helping others into a meaningful career.”
- “Becoming certified has helped me see this role as one truly recognized and valued by the state. In the past, peers were sometimes overlooked or underestimated, but this certification affirms that our work is essential to behavioral health. It reinforces that our voice matters, our experience has value, and our role is here to stay.”
- “Earning my [CMPSS] Certificate gave me confidence that I can achieve anything.”
