Opioid Dependency Treatment
For Professionals.
Expert Legal Consulting

First, I am a board certified Family Nurse Practitioner. My credentials are through the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Being licensed and board-certified are not the same thing. To be board certified, you must meet national standards and pass a board exam. You technically do not have to be board certified to practice. 
 

 My license is through New York State, I hold both a registered nursing license as well as a family nurse practitioner license. My licenses can be viewed via the New York State database. 

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To prescribe controlled substances, such as those for opioid use disorder, you must be registered by the DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency,) which is a federal regulatory body. This must be updated every 3 years. And it costs a lot of money and is quite annoying. 

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In addition to these, to start a practice in the state of New York, one must form a "PLLC," which is a professional limited liability company. You must prove to the state that you hold the licenses you say you do, and thus you receive a *special* LLC that not only takes forever to apply to, you also get to pay more money for it. You can view that here. My  business name is "Hannah Williams, Nurse Practitioner in Family Health, PLLC." I know, very imaginative. I had a cool name picked out, but the state told me I couldn't use it. 

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Just when you thought that was enough, I also just applied for "Legit Scripts" certification- this is a third party entity that essentially makes sure that my business is properly identified, that I'm actually qualified to do it, and that I am not engaging in unethical practices to make money.