Can the pre-treatment exam be done by telehealth in Tennessee?
Intake · part of The Practice Perimeter
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
The rest of what Tennessee says on this
Every other rule we have verified under good-faith examination, each linked to its primary source.
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
⚠️ AND A QUESTIONNAIRE IS NOT AN EXAMINATION. The same rule makes it a prima facie violation to prescribe or dispense any drug to a person for whom those four steps have not been completed BASED SOLELY ON ANSWERS TO A SET OF QUESTIONS. An online intake form is expressly not a substitute for the history and physical the rule requires.
Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0880-02-.14(7)(c) · verified Sep 2, 2026
The exceptions are narrow and named, and none of them describes a first cosmetic consultation: hospital admission orders; a patient of another physician for whom the prescriber is covering or has verified the medication’s appropriateness; short-term continuation medication for a new patient before their first appointment; and ESTABLISHED patients who, on sound medical practice, the physician judges do not require a new physical examination before a new prescription.
Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0880-02-.14(7)(b) · verified Sep 2, 2026
How other states answer this
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Related Tennessee questions
- Is an exam required before a patient can be treated in Tennessee?
- Must someone be on site while a patient is treated in Tennessee?
- Can a med spa in Tennessee offer compounded semaglutide or tirzepatide?
Get Tennessee changes as they publish
We scan the Tennessee legislature and licensing boards daily, plus the FDA and the Federal Register. Free weekly Brief — what changed, in plain language, with the source.
Free · unsubscribe in one click · we never sell your address
← All Tennessee rules and changes · MedSpaRadar is regulatory monitoring and reference, not legal, medical, or compliance advice. Verify against the linked primary source and consult qualified counsel before acting — rules change and turn on your specific facts. Legislative data via LegiScan (CC BY 4.0).