PMHNP Practice Requirements in Georgia: Scope, Prescribing & Collaboration

Practice Authority

What is Georgia NP practice authority?

On the AANP State Practice Environment map, Georgia is categorized among the restricted practice states. In practice, a nurse practitioner in Georgia does not practice independently; the ability to perform medical acts, including prescribing, flows from a written nurse protocol agreement with a delegating physician. PMHNPs are APRNs and work within this framework.

Georgia’s rules involve both the Georgia Board of Nursing and the Georgia Composite Medical Board, since physician delegation is central to APRN practice. The relevant rules have been undergoing revision, so the current requirements, including any updates to protocol agreements and prescribing, should be confirmed directly with the Board rather than taken from any summary.

Collaboration & Agreements

Is a physician agreement required in Georgia?

Yes. Georgia’s model is built around the nurse protocol agreement: a written document in which a physician delegates authority to the NP to perform specified medical acts and agrees to be available for consultation. The agreement defines what you may do and what you may prescribe. Georgia rules have also addressed how many APRNs or physician assistants a physician may supervise, and those provisions have been updated, so the specifics should be confirmed against current rules.

Do not treat a template protocol as authoritative or assume last year’s terms still apply. Confirm the current content requirements for a nurse protocol agreement, supervision limits, and any recent rule changes with the Georgia Board of Nursing.

Prescribing

Prescriptive authority and controlled substances

In Georgia, an NP’s prescribing authority is defined by the nurse protocol agreement, and controlled-substance prescribing is subject to additional, specific conditions. Georgia has historically imposed notable limits on APRN controlled-substance prescribing, including conditions tied to experience, protocol authorization, and the type or quantity of certain controlled substances, and these rules have been revised over time. For PMHNPs, whose care frequently involves controlled substances, these details are central and must be verified against current rules rather than assumed.

We do not publish specific schedules, day-supply limits, experience thresholds, or supervision caps here, because these figures change and errors carry real consequences. Confirm them with the Georgia Board of Nursing, the Georgia Composite Medical Board, and the DEA. If a claim about your prescribing authority cannot be confirmed there, treat it as unverified.

Next Step

Credentialing Is a Separate Track

Scope of practice decides how you can practice in Georgia. Getting paid is a separate track, with its own payer rules, Medicaid program, and enrollment timelines. We cover that in detail on the Georgia credentialing and payer enrollment page, and nationally in our PMHNP credentialing guide.

Building something new? Our guide on how to start a PMHNP practice helps you sequence licensure, collaboration, and enrollment in the right order. See the full PMHNP hub for billing, credentialing, and operations.

FAQ

Georgia PMHNP: frequently asked questions