Can the pre-treatment exam be done by telehealth in Tennessee?
Intake · part of The Practice Perimeter
Short answer
Only if it meets the same bar as an in-person visit — telemedicine rules don't relax the standard of care or the requirements for establishing a physician-patient relationship, and a remote evaluation requires a facilitator physically present with the patient.
Tennessee’s telemedicine rules disclaim any effect on the underlying duty: they are not meant to alter or amend the applicable standard of care in any particular field of medicine, nor to amend any requirement for the establishment of a physician-patient relationship. Remote delivery changes the channel, not the threshold.
Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0880-02-.16 (scope) · verified Sep 2, 2026 · regulatory monitoring, not legal advice
Related Tennessee rules
Where a remote evaluation is used the rules put a named person in the room: a FACILITATOR must be physically present with the patient and is responsible for verifying the patient’s identity and location and for the origination, collection and transmission of images or clinical data to the physician performing the evaluation remotely.
Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0880-02-.16(1)(a) · verified Sep 2, 2026
It is a prima facie violation of T.C.A. § 63-6-214(b)(1), (4) and (12) for a physician to prescribe or dispense ANY DRUG to any individual — whether in person, by electronic means, over the Internet or over telephone lines — unless the physician, or a licensed supervisee acting under appropriate protocols or medical orders, has first done and appropriately documented all four of: an appropriate history and physical examination; a diagnosis based on those examinations and on diagnostic and laboratory tests consistent with good medical care; a formulated therapeutic plan discussed with the patient along with its basis and the risks and benefits of the options; and assured availability of the physician or coverage for appropriate follow-up care.
Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0880-02-.14(7)(a) · verified Sep 2, 2026
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