Esthetician Cheat Sheet for Maryland
Requirements for Supervising Physician agreements in Maryland, plus a free agreement builder tailored to Maryland law.
Provider supervision requirements in Maryland
Updated 2026-09-03
Provided for educational and research purposes only — this is not legal advice. Laws and regulations change frequently, and this content may contain errors or omissions. Always confirm current requirements with a licensed attorney before relying on this for compliance decisions.
Maryland's APRN categories are not uniform: CRNPs and CNMs gained full practice authority in 2015 (after an 18-month new-graduate mentorship), CRNAs remain fully supervised with no prescriptive authority at all (Maryland is one of about 11 states granting CRNAs none), and only the psychiatric-mental-health population focus of CNS practice is independent. Maryland does not recognize PLLCs; professional entities use physician-only professional corporations, so multi-disciplinary ownership questions remain open.
Esthetician
Licensed estheticians (Bus. Occ. & Prof. Art. § 5-101(o); COMAR Title 9, Subtitle 22) practice independently within their defined esthetic-services scope — no physician involvement required. Laser/microdermabrasion/other mechanical skin-layer-removal devices are affirmatively EXCLUDED unless the person separately holds a Maryland Department of Health health-occupation license — a direct, statute-level exclusion, not merely a supervision gate.
Proximity
Not codified — left to the practice agreement
Chart review
Not codified — left to the practice agreement
Prescriptive authority
Covered by practice agreement · no controlled-substance authority
Estheticians do not have prescriptive authority and do not hold DEA registration; this category does not apply to their scope of practice.Practice ownership (CPOM)
Non-licensee ownership permitted — Estheticians are licensed under the Maryland Board of Cosmetologists (Bus. Occ. & Prof. Art. Title 5), not the health-occupations physician-only Professional Corporation framework — an esthetician may own a non-clinical skincare/spa business outright.
Supervision ratio
Not codified — left to the practice agreement
Meeting cadence
Not codified — left to the practice agreement
Written agreement
Not required
Unconditional for the esthetician's own licensed scope. Laser and microdermabrasion work requires a wholly separate Maryland Department of Health health-occupation license; the cosmetology-board esthetics license never reaches it, regardless of physician delegation.Legal sources
Md. Business Occupations and Professions Code § 5-101(o) — Definitions (esthetic services)
Maryland Board of Cosmetologists — Scope of Practice Guidance Document for the Limited Esthetician License (adopted June 2026)
$400–$600/mo
Estimated Esthetician supervision cost in Maryland
Available Supervising Physicians in Maryland
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