NP · Connecticut
Collaborative Practice Agreement for Nurse Practitioners in Connecticut
Yes, a written physician agreement is required. Connecticut does not name a specific instrument.
After the 3-year/2,000-hour threshold, an APRN may practice independently — alone or with any licensed health care provider — one of the more accessible full-practice-authority pathways nationally. Only the prescriptive component of collaboration must be in writing (§20-87a(2)(A)); the underlying collaboration relationship itself need not be a signed contract.
Independent practice requires: ≥3 years licensed and practicing as an APRN (prior collaboration with an out-of-state physician may count toward this, per §20-87a(2)(B)); ≥2,000 hours performing advanced-practice nursing activities in collaboration with a physician during that period (§20-87a(3)).
What the collaboration must look like
The rules the physician relationship has to follow. Each fact comes from the statute or board rule listed under sources.
Proximity
before the 3-year/2,000-hour independent-practice threshold: Available remotely (no on-site requirement)
'Collaboration' means a mutually agreed relationship addressing consultation/referral, coverage in the APRN's absence, a method to review patient outcomes, and disclosure to the patient — no on-site presence or mile/minute radius is codified (§20-87a(2)(A)).
Supervision ratio
Not codified — no cap on file
Chart review
Not codified — left to the agreement
Meeting cadence
Not codified — left to the agreement
Prescriptive authority
Separate prescribing terms required · controlled substances permitted
The written prescriptive collaboration must also provide 'a method to review patient outcomes,' including review of the medical therapeutics, labs, and diagnostics the APRN prescribes — no percentage or review frequency is codified.
Written agreement
Required
Required only during the pre-independence collaboration period. Documentation of having met the 3-year/2,000-hour threshold must be retained for at least 3 years after electing independent practice (§20-87a(3)).
Practice ownership (corporate practice of medicine)
Licensee-only ownership required — Professional Service Corporation under § 33-182a — nurses (which includes APRNs) are an independently eligible licensee category and may wholly own a PSC without physician participation.
Ownership eligibility is unaffected by whether the APRN has reached independent-practice status under §20-87a(3).
What a collaborating physician costs here
Typical monthly cost in Connecticut
$500 – $650
Estimate for one Nurse Practitioner. Standard-tier state.
About Connecticut's rules
NP, CNS, and CRNA are all licensed as a single 'advanced practice registered nurse' category (§20-94a) sharing an identical 3-year/2,000-hour collaboration-to-independence pathway (§20-87a); CT does not statutorily distinguish PMHNP or CNS scope from general NP. CNMs are licensed separately (Ch. 377), with no written collaborative-agreement requirement. No provider type below has a codified supervision ratio cap, chart-review percentage, or on-site proximity radius outside CRNA's surgery-specific carve-out.
Other clinicians in Connecticut: see the state overview.