April 27,
2017 18701 18701 
The State Medical Board of Ohio (“Medical Board”) invites interested parties to comment on proposed rules that will create a non-disciplinary, confidential monitoring program that allows licensees with mental or physical illnesses, other than substance use disorders, to be monitored by the Medical Board without being subjected to formal public disciplinary action. The program will be entirely within the Medical Board’s investigative process and overseen by the Secretary and Supervising Member of the Medical Board.
If the proposed confidential monitoring program is created, there will be three possible results should the Medical Board receive a complaint alleging that an applicant or licensee is unable to safely practice due to mental or physical illness, excluding substance use disorders. The three possibilities are: (1) the complaint is closed after review, with no public disclosure; (2) the individual is entered into the confidential monitoring program, with no public disclosure; or (3) formal disciplinary action against the individual is proposed, with the action being publicly disclosed. The proposed rules are as follows:
4731-28-02 Eligibility for confidential monitoring program
4731-28-03 Participation in the confidential monitoring program
4731-28-04 Disqualification from continued participation in the confidential monitoring program
4731-28-05 Termination of the participation agreement for the confidential monitoring program
April 20,
2017 18548 18548
The Medical Board is accepting comments on proposed amendments to two existing rules and a proposed new rule that will limit initial opioid analgesic prescriptions for acute pain to 5 days for minors and 7 days for adults. The rules also include a 30MED average daily dose limit.
(1) Rule 4731-11-01 Definitions Amended by adding definitions for acute pain, morphine equivalent dose, minor, extended-release or long-acting opioid analgesic, opioid analgesic, palliative care and terminal condition.
(2) Rule 4731-11-02 General Provisions Amended by adding a requirement that physicians and physician assistants must follow Rules 4729-5-30 and 4729-5-13, Ohio Administrative Code. This will include the requirement that prescriptions for controlled substances will need to include the diagnosis.
(3) New Rule 4731-11-13 Prescribing of opioid analgesics for acute pain
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Limits prescriptions for opioid analgesics to treat acute pain to no more than a seven-day supply for adults and a five-day supply for minors. If the physician determines that the pain is expected to persist for longer than seven days, the physician may prescribe for a longer period, but the reason for exceeding the limits and for prescribing an opioid analgesic must be documented in the patient’s medical record.
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Requires that the patient and the parent or guardian of a minor patient is advised of the benefits and risks of the opioid analgesic, including the potential for addiction.
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Clarifies that the rule does not apply to the treatment of patients receiving hospice or palliative care, cancer and terminal illness, or medication assisted treatment for addiction.
*These proposed rules do not apply to your chronic (long-term) pain patients.
April 19,
2017 18051 18051
IMPORTANT – License Renewal Information
The State Medical Board of Ohio will be changing online licensure websites in June 2017. All systems are anticipated to be unavailable from June 2 – June 19. You will not be able to renew your license during the outage.
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Physicians and Training Certificate holders with an approaching renewal deadline: You are strongly encouraged to renew your license BEFORE June 2. Log on to https://license.ohio.gov to get started. Chrome will not work properly with the physician online renewal website. Use a compatible browser such as Internet Explorer or Safari.
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All other license holders with a July 1, 2017 renewal deadline: Consider renewing before June 2 to avoid system outages. Click here to renew: https://elicense.ohio.gov. Chrome is the preferred browser for the elicense system.
Renewing early does not change future license expiration dates. Paper licensure applications for MD, DO, DPM and training certificates will not be accepted after June 19.
April 12,
2017 18276 18276
Important Information Regarding Your OARRS Account
The Ohio Automated Rx Reporting System (OARRS) is upgrading to the PMP AWARxE software platform on Tuesday, April 25, 2017.
On April 20, 2017, The OARRS registration function will be disabled to allow for the upgrade to the new system. Anyone wishing to register for an OARRS account should register prior to April 20, 2017.
For additional information about the upcoming transition, including information regarding the transfer of your OARRS account, please visit: www.pharmacy.ohio.gov/OARRSupdate
April 11,
2017 18088 18088
The date of the next Cosmetic Therapy exam will be Friday, July 7, 2017. The application must be submitted before 5pm Monday, June 26, 2017. Click here to submit an application.
April 4,
2017 17518 17518
Part of the State Medical Board of Ohio’s online system will be down for maintenance on Thursday, April 6th. From 6-9p.m. users will not be able to access any information on the following licenses during that time:
Cosmetic therapist, massage therapists, physician assistants, acupuncturist, oriental medicine, anesthesiologist assistants, radiologist assistants, genetic counselor, limited branch schools.
March 31,
2017 20377 20377
Board President, Dr. Amol Soin, joined Governor John R. Kasich and other leadership to announce new limits on prescription opiates on Thursday, March 30. The state began creating its voluntary guidelines in 2012. After close analysis of the state’s electronic prescribing data in OARRS, Ohio will now take the next step to update its policies to place commonsense limits on opiate prescribing for acute pain. The changes can lead to an estimated reduction of opiate doses in Ohio by 109 million per year while preserving the ability of clinicians to address pain in a competent and compassionate way. These proposed rules will be discussed by the Medical Board during the April 12 policy committee meeting and then proceed into Ohio’s standard rule review and adoption process. Further information and specific prescribing information will be provided by the State Medical Board of Ohio once the rules are finalized, but before they become effective.
For more information on the proposed rules, click here.