Amends TCA Title 33; Title 53; Title 63 and Title 68.

This bill requires the board of nursing ("board") to establish the designation of a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (APRN-PMHNP-BC) for a nurse practitioner who holds national specialty certification as a PMHNP-BC from the American Nurses Credentialing Center.<br /> <br /> Present law generally requires the board to issue a certificate of fitness to nurse practitioners who meet the qualifications, competencies, training, education and experience sufficient to prepare such persons to write and sign prescriptions or issue drugs within the limitations, or both.<br /> <br /> This bill authorizes a nurse practitioner, in the course of providing psychiatric mental health services, to diagnose, create a plan of care, issue orders, and prescribe drugs and other treatments without a collaborating physician, if the nurse practitioner:<br /> <br /> (1) Has been issued applicable certificates of fitness;<br /> <br /> (2) Has been granted the designation of a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (APRN-PMHNP-BC); and<br /> <br /> (3) Provides proof to the board that the nurse practitioner has completed a minimum of 60 months of practice under the supervision of a collaborating physician in this state or, if in another state, in a manner that the board finds is substantially similar to practice with a collaborating physician in this state.<br /> <br /> However, this bill provides that a nurse practitioner who has been issued applicable certificates of fitness and granted the designation of a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (APRN-PMHNP-BC), but who has not yet completed 60 hours of practice as described in (3) above and is under the supervision of a collaborating physician may, in the course of providing psychiatric mental health services, diagnose, create a plan of care, issue orders, and prescribe drugs and other treatments without a collaborating physician for a period not to exceed 90 calendar days, if the collaborating physician ceases to supervise the nurse practitioner due to (i) the death of the collaborating physician (ii) the suspension or revocation of the collaborating physician's license, (iii) the retirement of the collaborating physician, or (iv) a breach of the collaborating agreement by the physician.<br />