PMHNP · Tennessee
Collaborative Practice Agreement for Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioners in Tennessee
Yes, a written physician agreement is required. Tennessee does not name a specific instrument.
TN's Nurse Practice Act does not carve out a separate framework for psychiatric-mental health NPs — PMHNPs hold the same Certificate of Fitness/Collaborative Management Agreement as any other NP population focus. This entry exists for its own page/URL/calculator weight, not a codified legal distinction.
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
On-site presence required
Same standard as general NPs — in-person site visit every 30 days, with limited annual telehealth-visit substitutions.
Supervision ratio
Not codified — no cap on file
Chart review
20% of charts · Monthly (every 30 days) · countersignature required
Same standard as general NPs — 20% of charts every 30 days plus 100% of controlled-substance charts.
Meeting cadence
Not codified — left to the agreement
Prescriptive authority
Separate prescribing terms required · controlled substances permitted
Psychiatric prescribing in practice skews toward Schedule II stimulants and Schedule III–IV benzodiazepines more heavily than general NP practice — not a different legal limit, reflected only in calculatorWeights below.
Written agreement
Required
Practice ownership (corporate practice of medicine)
Licensee-only ownership required — Same as the general `np` entry.
Legal sources for these rules (1)
- Tenn. Code Ann. § 63-7-123 — Advanced Practice Nurse Certificate of Fitness; Collaborative Practice
What a collaborating physician costs here
Typical monthly cost in Tennessee
$500 – $800
Estimate for one Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. This state's rules add a restrictive-tier premium.
About Tennessee's rules
TN is a restricted-practice state for NPs — no independence pathway exists. Physicians must personally review ≥20% of an APRN's charts every 30 days (100% of controlled-substance charts) and visit remote practice sites in person every 30 days. TN has an explicit, unambiguous corporate-practice-of-medicine ban (statute, case law, and AG opinions; TCA § 63-6-204) — a professional corporation may practice only a single profession.
Other clinicians in Tennessee: see the state overview.