Governor DeWine Observes the First Ohio Overdose Awareness Day

August 31, 2021    5523    5523   

August 2021 eNews

August 23, 2021    5758    5758   

The August issue of the Medical Board's eNews is available: 

Agendas posted for August 2021 committee and board meetings

August 9, 2021    5704    5704   

The State Medical Board of Ohio will livestream its committee and board meeting on Wednesday, August 11. These open meetings will be shared on the board's YouTube channel. The agenda can be found here.

9:00 a.m. Compliance Committee

10:00 a.m. Board Meeting 

Med Board seeking registered nurse

August 6, 2021    5449    5449   

The Medical Board is seeking a part-time, contract registered nurse. 

Duties include: review and evaluate patient records, billing records, and/or other documents or records provided by the board and provide written analysis as to whether the patient records and/or other documents reflect conduct in accordance with acceptable medical practice, state and federal laws, rules, regulations and administrative memoranda. If interested, please provide resume and contact information to Don Davis at Donald.Davis@med.ohio.gov.

Agendas posted for July 2021 committee and board meetings

July 14, 2021    5606    5606   

The State Medical Board of Ohio will livestream its committee and board meeting. These open meetings will be shared publicly on the board's YouTube channel. The agenda can be found here.

July 14, 9:00 a.m. Compliance Committee

July 14, 10:00 a.m. Board Meeting 

Survey: Ohio's Health Care Professionals Well-being Survey

July 7, 2021    5898    5898   

The Ohio Physicians Health Program (OPHP) is conducting a statewide COVID-19 well-being survey. The purpose of this study is to gather the perspectives of health care professionals on the types of services needed to support well-being and the infrastructure needed to provide easy accessibility. Your insight will not only benefit the current system of support for health care professionals, but also better equip Ohio for future crises.

OPHP provides an environment for health care professionals to receive confidential services to improve their health and well-being. Understanding the current status of stress, burnout, compassion fatigue, and physical exhaustion for health care professionals is critical. It is necessary to gain a better understanding of what types of supportive services are most desired and how to help those services be more accessible and less stigmatized. OPHP has partnered with the evaluation team at Mighty Crow to design this survey and analyze the results. This survey is being funded through a grant from the Federation of State Medical Boards.

Your input is greatly appreciated. Your answers will help better inform OPHP and its partners as they work to improve services for health care professional health and well-being. The survey will take approximately 10 minutes to complete.

Click here to start the survey. Please complete the survey by August 5. 

Ohio to enter into the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact

July 7, 2021    8036    8036   

Senate Bill 6, signed into law by Governor DeWine on June 29, 2021, authorizes the State Medical Board of Ohio (SMBO) to enter into the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact. Ohio becomes the 35th state to become a member of the Compact. Physicians from any state with Compact membership, including Ohio, who meet the qualifications will be eligible for licensure in any other participating state. Senate Bill 6 gives the SMBO until September 29, 2022 to implement the system to begin processing and issuing licenses through this path.  

Please note, the Compact only includes the licensing of physicians with an MD or DO. Additionally, physicians who choose to obtain licensure through the Compact, whether as an Ohio physician who wants to practice outside of Ohio or as an out-of-state physician who wants to practice in Ohio, will have a licensure process different than the path currently followed by physicians seeking licensure in Ohio today. Out-of-state physicians can continue to seek licensure directly through the state of Ohio today and after implementation of the Compact.

The SMBO looks forward to working as part of the Compact to create an additional avenue for the licensing of physicians. We will keep you and your associations aware of our implementation plans as they develop over the next year. Those plans will include a ‘go live’ date for Ohio, as well as instructions on how to participate.

Additional information on the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact can be found here.

If you have additional questions, please email contact@med.ohio.gov.

Fraudulent prescription notice from Board of Pharmacy

July 1, 2021    5801    5801   

Recently, Maximus, an IT vendor contracted with the Ohio Department of Medicaid became aware of a Maximus cybersecurity incident that potentially exposed Medicaid provider names, social security numbers, addresses, DEA registration numbers, and other information.

Please be advised that the Board of Pharmacy has already been notified by at least one hospital system of several fraudulent prescriptions issued in recent days. While these reports may be coincidental to the Maximus cybersecurity incident, providers are strongly encouraged to utilize the OARRS MyRx Report feature to identify any potential fraudulent prescriptions issued under their DEA registration. If a provider identifies a prescription that appears fraudulent, they should report this information to the DEA and local law enforcement.

For more information on running a MyRx Report, a short video tutorial can be accessed here.  

Reports to the DEA can be made using its online reporting tool: https://apps2.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/rxaor/spring/main?execution=e1s1

If you believe you were impacted by the Maximus cybersecurity incident, Maximus is offering providers, at no cost, 24 months of credit monitoring and other services from Experian. Contact Experian’s dedicated assistance line at (800) 357-0823, Monday to Friday between 9:00 AM-11:00 PM EDT and Saturday/Sunday 11:00 AM-8:00 PM EDT.

If you have additional questions, please contact Maximus at questions@maximus.com or visit the Maximus web page at https://maximus.com/questions.

Telemedicine Update

June 17, 2021    8759    8759   

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Medical Board temporarily suspended the enforcement of rules that require in-person visits and allowed providers to use telemedicine to safely treat patients.

On June 9, the board voted to resume enforcement of these rules and prioritize continuity of care for Ohio patients. Enforcement of these rules were to begin three months after the lifting of the state declaration of emergency.

Governor DeWine has announced that the state emergency order will be lifted on Friday, June 18. The board intends to resume enforcement of these rules on September 17, 2021.

The Medical Board will soon provide additional information and resources to clarify Ohio’s telemedicine requirements.

Update: Board statement on podiatric scope of practice

June 14, 2021    6151    6151   

On November 10, 2021, the board issued the following statement regarding the June 2019 podiatric scope of practice communication:

The board has considered the comments received as we started the rule-making process with respect to whether supramalleolar osteotomy of the tibia and fibula and the harvest of bone marrow aspirate from the proximal tibia are within the scope of practice of podiatry. Based upon this gathered information, the board determined that it has acted prematurely in this matter and that additional legislative guidance is necessary. Therefore, the board is withdrawing its statement on these two procedures. It is our understanding that podiatrists were credentialed to perform these procedures prior to the issuance of the board’s statement in 2019. It is recommended that providers work with their hospital systems and legal counsel going forward.