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Collaboration

NOTICE  OF NEW REQUIREMENTS: Continuing education will be required for collaborating physicians for all new collaborative practices commenced after Jan. 1, 2025.  If you have taken the course within 60 months prior to that date, it will count toward that requirement. You will also have 12 months after commencement to obtain the education. See this informational page for more information. 

Application for Approval of Commencement of a Collaborative Practice 

The Board of Medical Examiners and the Board of Nursing jointly approve applications for approval of collaborative practices between qualified physicians and  CRNPs and/or CNMs.

  • COLLABORATING PHYSICIAN:  Apply for approval of an initial collaborative practice through your Licensee Portal:
    • Log in using your last name and last five digits of your SSN
    • Scroll down to "Apply for Collaborative Practice" and click the "Apply CP" button
    • Review instructions and rules regarding collaborative practices, click "Next" to review screen guide, and click "Next" to enter application information
    • Complete application and make payment
    • Upon successful completion, the CRNP or CNM's name will appear in the "License Information" section of your Licensee Portal
  • CRNP/CNM: Apply to Alabama Board of Nursing (ABN) for approval of an initial or modified collaborative agreement.
  • COLLABORATIVE AGREEMENT: Specifies the duties to be performed, work hours, quality assurance plans, and other details. Duties and skills not included in the core skills list are requested separately.
  • QUALITY ASSURANCE: A plan for quality assurance management with defined quality outcome measures for evaluation of the clinical practice of the physician assistant and include review of a meaningful sample of medical records plus all adverse outcomes. The term “medical records” includes, but is not limited to, electronic medical records. Documentation of quality assurance review shall be readily retrievable, identify records that were selected for review, include a summary of findings conclusions, and if indicated, recommendations for change. (For more information and sample forms, see our webpage Quality Assurance for Supervisory and Collaborative Relationships) 
  • TEMPORARY APPROVAL: Temporary approval to practice under standard duties and skills is issued by the ABN and becomes effective once the collaborating physician has applied to the ABME and paid the fee.
  • RENEWAL/TERMINATION: Collaborative agreements are not renewed. They continue in effect until notification of termination is received (see Changes to Hours Worked/Voluntary Termination). 

Apply for CP at the Licensee Portal

Qualifications for Approval—CRNP/CNM

  • Active Alabama registered nurse license or multi-state registered nurse license issued by a party state.
  • Has met all requirements for completion of/graduation from an organized program of study and clinical experience beyond the basic educational preparation as a registered nurse recognized by the Nursing Board.
  • At least a master’s or higher degree in advanced practice nursing from an accredited program recognized by the Nursing Board.
  • Current certification as a certified registered nurse practitioner or certified nurse midwife.

Qualifications for Physicians

  • Current, unrestricted license to practice medicine in Alabama.
  • Practiced medicine* for: at least three years; or at least one year and board certified; or at least one year and the practice site is limited to a hospital licensed by the Dept. of Public Health.
  • Paid all collaborative practice fees due to the Medical Board and completion of a Commencement of Collaborative Practice form. Applications remain incomplete until all forms and fees are received.

*since completion of residency/postgraduate education

Changes to Hours Worked/Voluntary Termination

To make changes in the hours worked of a CRNP/CNM, please contact the Collaborative Practices Department.

When a collaborative practice is voluntarily terminated by either party, the physician is responsible for notification to the Medical Board within 14 days. 

Terminate an existing collaboration through the Licensee Portal:

  • Log in using your last name and last five digits of your SSN
  • Scroll to "License Information" to find name of CRNP/CNM
  • Click "Terminate" to the right of the name
  • Enter termination date and save
  • Upon successful termination, CRNP/CNM name will no longer show under "License Information"

A notice of termination directed to either the Medical or the Nursing Board will meet the physician notification requirement and will result in termination of the physician’s approval to practice under the agreement.

Terminate CP at the Licensee Portal

Forms

Initial collaborative agreement application forms are available through the Board of Nursing.

Administrative

Specialty Skills

Fees

The fee for a physician commencing a collaborative practice is $200.

There is no renewal of collaborative practice agreements.  The parties are expected to notify their respective licensing boards when an agreement is terminated.

IMPORTANT:  Application fees are non-refundable.

FAQ

The determination is not made on the number of people. The Board limits a physician to supervise a total of 360 "full-time equivalent" (FTE) hours per week of advanced practice practitioners. Advanced practice practitioners include CRNPs, CNMs and PAs. The county and state health departments are exempt from this rule. Please contact our office if you have further questions about this issue.

To verify information on active collaborations, including hours listed:

Go to Licensee Lookup

Select CP for License Type and enter only the CP registration number and the collaborating physician's last name

Click "I am not a robot" and select "Search"

Your supervising and covering physicians will be listed along with hours worked.

The Collaborating Physician shall have no additional requirement for documentation of on-site collaboration when working in the same facility with the CRNP.

For the CRNP with less than two years (4000 hours) of clinical experience since initial certification or in the collaborating physician’s practice specialty, the physician must be present for not less than ten percent (10%) of the CRNP’s scheduled hours in an approved practice site.

For the CRNP with two years (4000 hours) of clinical experience, the physician must meet no less than quarterly and must visit remote sites no less than twice annually.

The legend and controlled drugs a nurse practitioner is authorized to prescribe are specified in the collaboration agreements and formularies. To prescribe controlled substances, nurse practitioners must apply and be approved for a Qualified Alabama Controlled Substances Certificate (QACSC). To prescribe Schedule II controlled substances, a nurse practitioner must also apply and be approved for a Limited Purpose Schedule II Permit (LPSP). See the Board's QACSC and LPSP web pages for more information. Currently, nurse practitioners may only prescribe certain medications for the treatment of obesity. See Board Rules, Chapter 540-X-17 for more information regarding prescribing for obesity/weight loss.

No, a collaborating physician's Alabama medical license must be current and unrestricted.

An approved site for a collaborative agreement without a collaborating or covering physician on-site. The collaborating physician’s principal practice site, acute care hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, licensed, special-care assisted living facilities, and licensed assisted living facilities are not remote practice sites for the purpose of these rules.

No, a PA, CRNP, or CNM may only practice in a hospital where the practitioner and his or her supervising or collaborating physician both have privileges.

Yes, they may refer to physical therapists for treatment based on a protocol prescribed by the licensed physician under whom the PA, CRNP, or CNM is practicing.