PA · Arizona
Collaborative Drug Therapy Management for Physician Assistants in Arizona
Yes, a written agreement with a physician is required before you prescribe and adjust drug therapy. Arizona calls it a Written Supervision Agreement.
HB 2043 (2023, eff. Jan. 1, 2024) recodified PA law at A.R.S. Title 32, Ch. 25 and removed the written supervision agreement at 8,000 hours, but a 'collaborating physician or entity' with designated responsible physician(s) is still required even past that threshold — this is not textbook full independence despite some secondary sources describing it that way.
Independent practice requires: ≥8,000 hours of board-certified clinical PA practice (qualifying out-of-state hours may count toward the threshold).
What the physician relationship 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
A.R.S. § 32-2531: supervision/collaboration 'may occur through electronic means and does not require the physical presence of the supervising physician at the time or place' the PA provides services — an explicit statutory rejection of any proximity standard, below or above the 8,000-hour threshold.
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
No AZ-specific DEA-registration detail beyond standard federal requirements was found in the sections reviewed.
Written agreement
Required
Required only below the 8,000-hour threshold. At/above 8,000 hours no written supervision agreement is required, but the PA must still collaborate with, consult, or refer to an appropriate professional under a designated collaborating physician/entity (A.R.S. § 32-2531).
Practice ownership (corporate practice of medicine)
Non-licensee ownership permitted — Corporation may practice medicine through Arizona-licensed individuals (A.R.S. § 10-3301)
Business-formation guidance commonly cites a rule that non-licensed owners may hold no more than 49% of an Arizona professional corporation or PLLC, with licensed directors holding at least half; check the professional-corporation article (Title 10, Ch. 20) before relying on that figure.
Sources for the supervision rules (3)
- A.R.S. § 32-2501 — Definitions (Physician Assistants, Title 32 Ch. 25)
- A.R.S. § 32-2531 — Scope of Practice; Supervision/Collaboration
- HB 2043 (2023) — PA practice modernization, eff. Jan. 1, 2024
What a collaborating physician costs here
Typical monthly cost in Arizona
$500 – $650
Estimate for one Physician Assistant. Standard-tier state.
About Arizona's rules
Arizona has no explicit statutory CPOM ban; existing doctrine comes only from two optometry cases never applied to physician/PA ownership, making MSO tolerance a reasonable inference rather than a confirmed rule. NP/CNM/PMHNP have FULL practice authority with no collaborative agreement. PA's 2024 reform (A.R.S. Title 32 Ch. 25) removes the written agreement at 8,000 hours but still requires a designated collaborating physician/entity.
Other clinicians in Arizona: see the state overview.