Letters from a physician rather than a therapist
Answers
Often yes, and in five states it may be the only route available quickly.
The requirement is a licence and an evaluation
Not a particular job title. What matters is a current licence, a scope of practice that covers the judgement being made, and an actual evaluation of you. A primary care physician who has treated you for years meets all three comfortably in most cases.
Why this is often the best option
- They already know you, which is exactly what makes documentation reliable.
- In Arkansas, California, Iowa, Louisiana and Montana the thirty day relationship requirement is already satisfied.
- It usually costs nothing beyond an ordinary appointment.
- A letter from a treating clinician is the most credible document available in this area.
Why some decline
Practice policy, or a view that a housing recommendation is outside what they do. Both are professional positions rather than judgements about you, and it is worth asking which it is, because the answer tells you whether to ask someone else or to think again.
What they write should say the same things any letter says: that a disability exists within the meaning of the Fair Housing Act, that the animal alleviates a symptom or effect of it, and their licence details. It should not name a diagnosis.
Common questions
- Does a nurse practitioner count?
- Where licensed and acting within scope, generally yes. Psychiatric nurse practitioners write these routinely.