NP · Washington
Collaborative Practice Agreement for Nurse Practitioners in Washington
No. Nurse Practitioners practice independently here. Washington does not require one.
Washington is a longstanding full-practice-authority state — ARNPs (which includes NP) are licensed independent practitioners under RCW 18.79 with no physician agreement of any kind required, verified current for 2026 against WAC 246-840-300.
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
No proximity requirement
No physician-oversight relationship exists — ARNPs are licensed independent practitioners under WAC 246-840-300.
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
Covered by the practice agreement · controlled substances permitted
Schedule II-V upon Board of Nursing prescriptive-authority approval (RCW 18.79.240); Schedule I remains off-limits by statute. Requires an additional 15 hours/2-year-cycle of pharmacotherapeutics CE beyond the base 30-hour ARNP CE requirement.
Written agreement
Not required
Unconditional — no collaborating-physician agreement of any kind is required for ARNP/NP licensure or practice in Washington.
Practice ownership (corporate practice of medicine)
Licensee-only ownership required — Professional Service Corporation under RCW 18.100.050 — NPs are one of 12 enumerated health professions eligible to co-own a multi-discipline PSC (alone or with physicians/PAs/other listed professions); non-licensees may not hold equity.
Legal sources for these rules (3)
What a collaborating physician costs here
Typical monthly cost in Washington
$500 – $600
Estimate for one Nurse Practitioner. Standard-tier state.
About Washington's rules
Washington is a full-independence state for ALL FOUR ARNP roles (NP, CRNA, CNM, CNS) under RCW 18.79, not just NPs — confirmed current via WAC 246-840-300/420 and Board of Nursing guidance. PAs are separate: HB 2041 (eff. Jan. 1, 2025) replaced supervision-only with a 4,000-hour supervision→collaboration tier (RCW 18.71A.120) with no numeric ratio cap.
Other clinicians in Washington: see the state overview.