Nurse Practitioner Scope of Practice: Massachusetts

By ThriveAP Team Member Leonel Cabrera

Home to the heralded Boston Celtics and Red Sox, Massachusetts is well known for its ample history and its reputation as a breeding ground for famous authors, actors and athletes.  Some notable figures include former president John F. Kennedy and inventor Ben Franklin.  Controversial novelists such as Edgar Allan Poe and women’s freedom advocate Susan B. Anthony started their legacies here.  But, do the laws regulating nurse practitioners in Massachusetts give them the potential for greatness as well?

Despite having the title “nurse practitioner” in common, each state has different rules and regulations governing NP’s scope of practice.  Let’s take a look at the laws overseeing nurse practitioners in Massachusetts.

Massachusetts Nurse Practitioner Supervision Laws

Nurse practitioners in Massachusetts are not required to have physician oversight in diagnosing and treating patients.  However, MD involvement is required to prescribe.  This means that to practice to their full potential, nurse practitioners in Massachusetts must have a collaborative practice agreement with a physician.  The physician does not need to be on-site but must be available for consultation with the NP in person or by phone.

The physician collaborating with the nurse practitioner must have a similar area of expertise to the NP.  For example, a pediatric NP may have a pediatrician or family practice physician as a collaborator.  There is no restriction on the number of nurse practitioners a single MD is allowed to supervise at one time.  Massachusetts does recognize nurse practitioners as official primary care providers.

Massachusetts Nurse Practitioner Prescribing Laws

For an NP to have prescriptive authority in Massachusetts he/she must sign a collaborative agreement specifying the NP’s scope of practice.  The nurse practitioner’s charts must be reviewed at least once every three months in regards to prescribing but no specific quantity of chart reviews is required.  Prescribing authority ranges from Schedule II to Schedule IV drugs.  However if the NP prescribes Schedule II drugs, the chart must be reviewed within 96 hours. On all prescriptions, the physician’s name must be present.

Nurse practitioners in Massachusetts are prohibited from self-prescribing Schedule II, III, and IV drugs for personal use.  NP’s are also prohibited from prescribing Schedule II drugs to family members except in emergency situations.

Other Massachusetts Scope of Practice Laws

Nurse practitioners in Massachusetts can sign death certificates after a reasonable attempt to contact a medical examiner or supervising physician.  NP’s are also allowed to sign handicap parking permits.

Massachusetts is largely a “hit-or-miss” state when it comes to NP’s.  The scope of practice is not as extensive as in some states but it is less restrictive than others.