Massachusetts is one of the most rigorously enforced corporate practice jurisdictions in the country, and it has a reporting mechanism almost no other state uses.
The Board of Registration in Medicine regulates physician ownership at 243 CMR 2.11, headed “Physician Ownership Interests”, which requires the physician to hold majority ownership of the practice entity. The part operators miss: physicians report their ownership interest and percentage biennially at licence renewal. Your structure is described to the regulator, by your own medical director, every two years.
What Massachusetts actually requires
- A physician majority owner of the entity delivering medical services, under 243 CMR 2.11.
- One of the permitted forms: an individual licensed practitioner, professional partnership, professional corporation, professional limited liability partnership or professional limited liability company. A conventional business corporation is not on the list.
- An arrangement your medical director can describe accurately on their biennial renewal, because they will be asked.
- Awareness that Massachusetts’ corporate practice doctrine is long-settled — it traces to McMurdo v. Getter (1937), not to a recent statute.
- Two regulators, not one: the Department of Public Health handles clinic licensure and the Board of Registration in Medicine handles physicians.
Who may do what in Massachusetts
| Licence | What they may do |
|---|---|
| MD or DO | Independent; must hold majority ownership of the practice entity |
| Independent nurse practitioner | Massachusetts grants NPs full practice authority; confirm the role and entity form with counsel |
| Physician assistant | Within scope, under the applicable supervision |
| Registered nurse | Within RN scope, under an order; not a majority owner of the medical entity |
| Lay person or business corporation | May not own a controlling interest or employ physicians to practise medicine |
| Management company | Administration only, owned separately |
Improper delegation and supervision is the other place Massachusetts practices get into difficulty — assigning procedures to staff who are not qualified for them, or a medical director not providing the oversight the role requires. Violations of the ownership rule carry fines, suspension or revocation.
What MDside provides in Massachusetts
- A Massachusetts-licensed MD or DO as medical director, doing the work rather than lending a name.
- A structure your medical director can attest to accurately at renewal, because in Massachusetts that attestation is part of the compliance surface.
- The professional entity and management agreement built to Massachusetts rather than to a national template.
- Licensed physicians for the good faith exams behind prescriptions and injectables.
- 503A and 503B pharmacy relationships and lab draws.
See what is included, or book a call and tell us which states you operate in.
Read the detail on Massachusetts
Frequently asked questions
Can a non-physician own a med spa in Massachusetts?
Not a controlling interest in the entity practising medicine. 243 CMR 2.11 requires physician majority ownership, and lay persons and business corporations may not employ physicians to practise medicine. A management company may be owned separately.
What is 243 CMR 2.11?
The Board of Registration in Medicine regulation on physician ownership interests. It requires majority physician ownership of the practice entity, and physicians report their ownership interest and percentage biennially at licence renewal.
Which regulator licenses the clinic?
Clinic licensure sits with the Department of Public Health; the Board of Registration in Medicine regulates the physicians.
General information about Massachusetts practice structure and med spa regulation, not legal advice. Statutes, board rules and scope-of-practice requirements change. Confirm your obligations with healthcare counsel licensed in Massachusetts.