The Tennessee Health Department reports that 259 pain clinics now have licenses to operate after a new state law took effect January 1.
The Tennesseans reports the northeast corner of the state and rural counties of the Cumberland Plateau have the highest concentration of those clinics.
A spokesperson from the state health department says 11 applications are under review and they rejected 19.
The 2012 law requires licensed physicians to be present in pain clinics at least 20 percent of the time. It also forbids cash payments for treatments.
Lawmakers say they hope this new law will help the state better track clinics that open and close across the state.