The Board may issue licensure according to the following criteria, process, and qualifications:

1. (1) Qualifications for licensure. To practice as an anesthesiologist assistant in Tennessee a person must meet the following requirements: ANESTHESIOLOGIST ASSISTANTS

   1. (a) An applicant shall obtain an application form from the Board Administrative Office or from the Board’s website, respond truthfully and completely to every question or request for information contained in the form, and submit it along with all documentation and fees required by the form and this rule to the Board’s Administrative Office.
   2. (b) An applicant shall cause to be submitted the equivalent of a Tennessee Certificate of Endorsement (verification of licensure/certification/registration) from each licensing board of each state or county in which the applicant holds or has ever held a license/certificate/registration to practice any profession that indicates the applicant holds or held an active license/certificate/registration and whether it is in good standing presently or was at the time it became inactive. It is the applicant’s responsibility to request this information be sent directly from each such licensing board to the Board’s Administrative Office.
   3. (c) An applicant shall submit proof of United States citizenship or of being lawfully present in the United States pursuant to T.C.A. § 4-58-103.
   4. (d) An applicant shall submit a clear and recognizable, recently taken, bust photograph which shows the full head, face forward from at least the top of the shoulders up.
   5. (e) An applicant shall submit sufficient evidence of successful completion of an anesthesiologist assistant program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs or its predecessor or successor organization. A copy of the applicant’s diploma shall be submitted as evidence of satisfactory completion.
   6. (f) An applicant shall submit sufficient evidence of current certification by the National Commission for Certification of Anesthesiologist Assistants (NCCAA) or its successor organization and shall have successfully completed the National Certifying Examination for Anesthesiologist Assistants as administered by the NCCAA. Applicants shall have verification of passage of the certifying examination and active certification submitted to the Board directly from the NCCAA.
   7. (g) An applicant shall submit sufficient evidence of Advanced Cardio Vascular Life Support (ACLS) certification.
   8. (h) An applicant shall submit the application fee and state regulatory fee as provided by Rule 0880-15-.01.
   9. (i) An applicant shall cause the results of a criminal background check to be submitted to the Board’s Administrative Office directly from the vendor identified in the Board’s licensure application materials.
   10. (j) An applicant shall submit two letters of reference from the applicant’s supervising anesthesiologists or for recent graduates, from the director of the applicant’s training program or faculty anesthesiologist addressing the applicant’s clinical skills and ability. Each letter must be addressed to the Board and must have been written no more than six months prior to the filing of the application for licensure.

2. (2) Review and decisions for licensure shall be governed as follows:

   1. (a) The Board’s administrative staff shall determine when an application file is complete.
   2. (b) If an application is incomplete when received by the Board’s Administrative Office, the applicant shall be notified of the information required. The applicant shall cause the requested information to be received by the Board’s Administrative Office on or before ANESTHESIOLOGIST ASSISTANTS the ninetieth (90th) day after the initial letter notifying the applicant of the required information is sent. If requested information is not timely received, the application file shall be closed, and the applicant notified that the Board will not consider licensure until a new application is received.
   3. (c) If a completed application is denied, conditioned, or restricted by the Board, a notification of denial shall be sent by the Board Administrative Office by certified mail, return receipt requested, which shall contain the specific authority for the denial. The applicant is not entitled to a contested case hearing. If the applicant believes that the denial was in error, the applicant may request, in writing within 30 days of receipt of the denial, to appear before the Board for an interview.

Authority: T.C.A. §§ 63-21-102, 63-21-103, 63-21-105, and 63-21-107. Administrative History: Emergency rules filed May 20, 2026; effective through November 16, 2026.