AmSpa Launches First Ever State-By-State Summary of Medical Spa Laws

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The American Med Spa Association (AmSpa), in partnership with local health care attorneys in over 30 states, has officially launched a website that summarizes the state-specific laws and regulations affecting medical spas and laser centers across the country. Developed in response to the overwhelming need for regulatory information related to the exploding med spa industry, this website is the only resource that provides comprehensive summaries of state medical spa laws and regulations.

"Med[ical] spa owners and industry professionals have complained for years about a lack of information relative to what med spas can and cannot do," said Alex Thiersch, attorney, founder and director of AmSpa. "It was often impossible to locate even basic information on regulatory issues because the laws in each state are confusing and difficult to find."

But now, Amspa's state law summaries, found on AmSpa's website, www.americanmedspa.org, provide the answers to questions such as "who can own a med[ical] spa", "who can inject Botox", and "does a physician need to see every patient prior to treatment?" (check out the summaries here.)

"Every state has different laws governing med[ical] spas and laser centers," says Steven H. Dayan, MD, award-winning Chicago rhinoplasty expert and cosmetic surgeon. "Additionally, who can perform laser treatments may vary by state. It is prudent for all medical providers and owners of a 'medispa' to be certain they are meeting their individual state regulations." AmSpa's goal, according to Thiersch, is to ensure providers like Dayan have the information they need at their fingertips.

AmSpa, which was launched in early 2013, has taken a unique approach to summarizing each state's laws. Instead of summarizing the laws on its own, AmSpa has entered into partnerships with local medical spa attorneys in each state. These attorneys, who have experience navigating the health care regulations in their state, provide answers to the regulatory questions that have gone unanswered for years. The attorneys are also available to offer consultation to industry professionals in need of legal help.

"Attorneys qualified to help medical spas are difficult to find," said AmSpa's Florida partner, Jeffrey L. Cohen, Esq. president & CEO of Florida Healthcare Law Firm with over 26 years' experience serving the health care industry. "Med[ical] spas are a hybrid of several different regulated professions, and the laws are so specialized that hiring an attorney with extensive experience specifically in health care is imperative."

AmSpa partnered with attorneys who are familiar with the laws in each state to provide accurate and up-to-date information. Further, AmSpa's state law summaries are posted in easy-to-understand format, using common sense language without confusing "legalese."

AmSpa currently has summaries of 8 states posted on its website—Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, and Wisconsin—with over 20 more states currently in development. Most, if not all, will be summarized within the next thirty days.

Industry professionals can click on their particular state and find a list of commonly asked regulatory questions related to that state. Each state page also provides dedicated resources such as local industry news, legislative updates, and webinars prepared by industry professionals in that state.

"AmSpa is already the best resource available for information and news in the med[ical] spa industry," Thiersch said. "We are continually searching for relevant stories and information to give our members. The state-law summaries take the site to another level, providing a resource that was missing but desperately needed."

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