Signed by Governor Mike DeWine

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to concur with House amendments and pass a bill that increases the authority of the State Medical Board to hold sexually abusive medical professionals accountable in Ohio.

Highlights:

• Increases the authority of the State Medical Board to hold sexually abusive medical professionals accountable in Ohio, including, but not limited to (Sec. 1-4):

• Increasing reporting requirements, such as:

• Requiring healthcare facilities to report the start of a sexual misconduct or criminal misconduct investigation against a licensee to the State Medical Board within 30 days;

• Requiring licensees to report certain criminal charges within 30 days of the charge;

• Adding additional reporting requirements to the Board for indictments and convictions of sexual battery offenders who are licensed medical providers; and

• Authorizing the offense of failure to report a crime will be expanded to instances when an individual knows that a licensed medical provider has committed a sexual offense against a patient.

• Allowing earlier license suspensions so the Board will be authorized to summarily suspend a license if they receive verifiable information that a licensee has been charged with a felony, and the conduct charged constitutes a disciplinary violation under Ohio law; and

• Providing additional transparency, including:

• Requiring the Board to require doctors to notify their patients in writing if they are on probation for sexual misconduct or patient harm; and

• Additionally authorizing the Board, when a victim comes forward and reports a case of sexual misconduct, to provide them with status updates about their complaint.

• Prohibiting certain healthcare providers from performing or authorizing another provider to perform an intimate examination on an anesthetized or unconscious patient.

• Specifies that the provisions of this bill shall not take effect until October 12, 2028 (Sec. 5).

Full Bill Text