Stay in your Lane: Ohio Proposes New Rules on Office-Based Surgery

The State Medical Board of Ohio recently announced proposed amendments and an opportunity for public comment regarding Ohio’s office-based surgery rules.^[1] These rules are significant and govern the standards and requirements for surgery in an office-based setting. Regulatory enforcement of these rules has increased in recent years and physicians and practices offering such services are encouraged to review these proposed significant changes.

The proposed changes address many aspects of office-based surgery including:

• Mandatory education, training and experience standards for performing surgery in an office-based setting;
• anesthesia standards including tumescent anesthesia;
• accreditation requirements;
• liposuction in the office setting; and
• facility standards.

The open comment period closes Friday, October 31, 2025.

Perhaps most significant among the new  rules is a change which appears to address recent Board concern with physicians performing surgery in areas outside of their training. In this regard, the proposed changes include a new rule which establishes mandatory education, training and experience standards which must be met prior to performing certain office-based surgeries.

Additionally, the Board proposes a new rule outlining the required standard of care for office-based surgery which mandates, among other things, new pre-procedure patient evaluation standards, informed consent, monitoring, discharge criteria and post-operative instructions. These additions require increased oversight and documentation and raise potential implications for facility accreditation and registration.

Failure to comply with the approved Board rules for office-based surgery will constitute a violation of the standards of care and subject physicians to potential disciplinary action. To ensure compliance and mitigate risk, affected parties should review the proposed rule changes and internal policies and procedures under OAC Ch. 4731-25.

Interested and affected parties are encouraged to submit comments to the Board by or before October 31, 2025. Submission can be made through the instructions provided here. Dinsmore’s health care attorneys will continue to monitor the rulemaking process and will provide updates regarding significant changes.  If you have any questions, please contact your Dinsmore attorney.  

*Sarvani Vemuri is a law clerk and is not yet licensed to practice law.