Collaborating Physicians in New York: What NPs Need Now

The 3,600-Hour Threshold

New York takes a tiered approach to NP practice authority. Below 3,600 hours of experience, a written collaborative agreement and written practice protocols with a physician are required. At 3,600 hours, those requirements lift entirely.

The NYSED Office of the Professions states the rule as follows:

"Nurse practitioners, however, must practice in accordance with written practice protocols and a written practice agreement with a collaborating physician unless and until the NP has completed 3,600 hours of experience. Thereafter, the NP may practice independently."

What this means practically: if you're below the threshold you need a collaborating physician, a signed agreement, and written protocols before seeing patients. If you've crossed it, none of that is required under state law.

Sunset notice: This provision of NY Education Law § 6902 currently carries a statutory expiration of July 1, 2030. The sunset has been extended before — it was previously set to expire July 1, 2026. Legislation to remove it permanently is pending but has not passed. NPs relying on the 3,600-hour threshold should confirm current status with the NYSED Office of the Professions.

The New York Process, Step by Step

1. Draft and sign the written Collaborative Practice Agreement with your collaborating physician.
2. Select an approved practice protocol. New York requires NPs to practice pursuant to written protocols reflecting the specialty area in which you're certified. NYSED maintains a list of approved protocol texts — choose from it rather than writing your own.
3. Begin practicing. No pre-approval, no waiting for a number. Once the agreement and protocol are in place you can work.
4. File Form 4NP within 90 days. Both you and your physician complete and sign it, and it goes to the NYSED Office of the Professions within 90 days of your first day of professional practice. This is a one-time submission, not an annual filing.
5. Keep a copy at every practice setting, available for NYSED inspection.
6. Your physician reviews charts no less than every three months — and documents it.

What a Collaborating Physician Costs in New York

New York NPs under 3,600 hours compete for a limited pool of collaborating physicians willing to take on new arrangements. Add the four-NP cap for NPs at different locations and the constraint tightens further.

Practically, that means an NP contacting physicians cold is negotiating without leverage.

This is where a network is worth something concrete. Because we're placing multiple NPs with physicians who have capacity, and bringing them pre-vetted matches rather than one-off inquiries, we negotiate rates across a pool rather than accepting whatever a single physician quotes a stranger in a tight market.

At MD-Match, pricing is tailored to your practice rather than flat-rated. The match fee is $50, one time, and rematching is free, always.

Mistakes I Actually See in New York Arrangements

Not knowing where you stand on the 3,600-hour threshold.

NYSED doesn't send a notice when you cross it. NPs who've hit 3,600 hours sometimes continue paying for a collaboration arrangement they no longer need. NPs who are short of it sometimes assume they've crossed because the number is rarely stated plainly. Know your count.

Missing the 90-day Form 4NP window.

You can practice immediately, which is genuinely convenient — and it's exactly why the filing gets forgotten. There's no gate to remind you.

Chart review that drifts past three months.

The rule is "no less often than every 3 months," and it's the physician's obligation. Quarterly slips to twice a year without anyone deciding to let it. Documentation matters as much as the review.

Assuming the four-NP cap applies to your situation when it doesn't — or the reverse.

The cap is on NPs at different locations. If you practice at the same location as your collaborating physician, it doesn't bind. Worth clarifying before you assume a physician is unavailable.

One copy instead of one per setting.

The agreement must be available at every practice setting for NYSED inspection, not filed centrally.

Every physician in the MD-Match network is background-checked, license-verified for New York, and capacity-checked before matching. We track the 90-day Form 4NP deadline and set quarterly review reminders, because both are the kind of obligation that gets missed precisely because nothing enforces them until something goes wrong.

How MD-Match Works in New York

1. Complete the free intake form — credential, specialty, practice setting, timeline. First step takes about two minutes.
2. Get a personalized quote. I review every New York submission myself. Tell us your hours and specialty — that shapes how we match you.
3. Pay the one-time $50 match fee and get matched with a New York–licensed, specialty-aligned physician with genuine capacity.
4. We handle the compliance rails — agreement drafting, protocol selection from the NYSED-approved list, the Form 4NP filing inside 90 days, and quarterly review reminders. If a match stops working, rematching is free.