An Act to Update the Laws Governing Osteopathic Physician
Maine Legislature, Session 132, LD 1757
Committee: Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services
Sponsors: MATHIESON
Amends: 32 MRSA §2562, 32 MRSA §2571, 32 MRSA §2572, 32 MRSA §2573

Legislative Document
No. 1757
H.P. 1175
House of Representatives, April 22, 2025
An Act to Update the Laws Governing Osteopathic Physician 
Licensing
Submitted by the Department of Professional and Financial Regulation pursuant to Joint 
Rule 204.
Reference to the Committee on Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services 
suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative MATHIESON of Kittery.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  32 MRSA §2562, first ¶, as amended by PL 1997, c. 50, §2, is further 
amended to read:
The board shall meet in June of each year hold regular monthly meetings and any 
additional special meetings at a time and place the chair may designate. The board shall 
elect one of its members as chair annually and one of its members as secretary-treasurer, 
to hold office at the pleasure of the board. The secretary-treasurer shall ensure proper 
management of the board's finances. Special meetings may be called at the pleasure of the 
chair and in case of the death or inability of the chair, the secretary-treasurer may call 
special meetings. The board shall cause a seal of suitable inscription to be procured and 
affixed to papers that may require the seal, shall keep a correct record of its proceedings 
and has power to make rules, not inconsistent with this chapter, it considers necessary for 
the successful enforcement of its authority and the performance of its duties. As part of the 
biennial relicensure process, the board shall prepare and distribute to each licensed 
osteopathic physician practicing in the State a copy of its code of ethics and current rules 
relative to continuing medical education. The chair and the secretary-treasurer may 
administer oaths in matters connected with the duties of the board. The records of the board 
must include a report of all money received and disbursed by the board and a list of all 
applicants for licenses, including the name and location of the school or college of 
osteopathic medicine approved by the American Osteopathic Association that granted the 
degree to each applicant and whether the applicant was granted or denied a license. These 
records, or duplicates, must always be open to inspection in the office of the Secretary of 
State during regular office hours. Four members of the board constitute a quorum for the 
transaction of business.  A license to practice osteopathic medicine may not be granted, 
except on an affirmative vote of a majority of the board.
Sec. 2.  32 MRSA §2571, as amended by PL 2001, c. 492, §1, is repealed and the 
following enacted in its place:
§2571.  Licensure; qualifications; fees
Except as otherwise specified by this chapter, an applicant for licensure as an 
osteopathic physician in this State must satisfy the following requirements.
1.  Osteopathic education.  An applicant must graduate from an osteopathic medical 
school designated as accredited by the American Osteopathic Association's Commission 
on Osteopathic College Accreditation.
2.  Postgraduate training.  An applicant who has graduated from an accredited 
osteopathic medical school prior to January 1, 2026 must have satisfactorily completed at 
least 12 months in a medical graduate educational program accredited by the Accreditation 
Council on Graduate Medical Education or the American Osteopathic Association.  An 
applicant who has graduated from an accredited osteopathic medical school on or after 
January 1, 2026 must have satisfactorily completed at least 36 months in a graduate 
educational program accredited by the Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical 
Education or the American Osteopathic Association.
The board may not require an applicant for initial licensure or license renewal as an 
osteopathic physician under this chapter to obtain certification from a specialty medical 
board or to complete maintenance of certification as a condition of licensure.  For the 
purposes of this subsection, "maintenance of certification" means a program that requires 
a physician to engage in periodic examination, self-assessment, peer evaluation or other 
activities to maintain certification from a specialty medical board.
3.  Examination.  An applicant must achieve a passing score on each component of 
the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners' Comprehensive Osteopathic 
Medical Licensing Examination of the United States, known as the COMLEX-USA 
examination, or other examinations designated by the board as the qualifying examination 
or examinations for licensure.
4.  Fees.  An applicant must pay a fee up to $600 plus the cost of the qualifying 
examination or examinations. Fees set in this chapter are nonrefundable application fees or 
administrative processing fees payable to the board at the time of application or at the time 
board action is requested.
5.  No cause for disciplinary action.  An applicant may not be licensed unless the 
board finds that the applicant is qualified and no cause exists, as set forth in section 2591-A, 
that may be considered grounds for disciplinary action against a licensed physician.
6.  Special license categories.  The board may issue a license limited to the practice of 
administrative medicine, or any other special license, as set forth by routine technical rule 
of the board adopted pursuant to Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
Sec. 3.  32 MRSA §2572, as amended by PL 1997, c. 50, §4, is repealed.
Sec. 4.  32 MRSA §2573, as amended by PL 2001, c. 492, §2, is further amended to 
read:
§2573.  Temporary licensure
An osteopathic physician in good repute who is a graduate of a school or college of 
osteopathic medicine approved by the American Osteopathic Association, serving as a 
fellow, an intern or resident physician in a hospital in this State, shall register with the board 
and must be issued a temporary license by the board evidencing the right to practice only 
under hospital control.  Such a license may not be issued for a period in excess of one year 
but may be renewed from time to time, not to exceed an aggregate of 5 years.  The license 
must be in a form prescribed by the board and may be revoked or suspended by the board 
with the suspension or revocation effective immediately when written notification from the 
board is received by the hospital.  An examination may not be required for applicants for 
this temporary license.  The fee for such a license may not be more than $450.
SUMMARY
This bill changes the laws governing osteopathic physicians to:
1. Remove the provision that requires the Board of Osteopathic Licensure to meet in 
June of each year and replace it with a requirement that the board hold regular monthly 
meetings and any additional special meetings;
2. Remove the provision that provides that a license to practice osteopathic medicine 
may not be granted except on an affirmative vote of a majority of the Board of Osteopathic 
Licensure;
3. Require applicants for licensure to meet minimum qualifications, including, for 
applicants who graduate from an accredited osteopathic medical school after 2025, 
graduation from an osteopathic medical school accredited by the Commission on 
Osteopathic College Accreditation, completion of at least 36 months in a graduate 
educational program approved by the Accreditation Council on Graduate Medical 
Education, achievement of a passing score on each component of the National Board of 
Osteopathic Medical Examiners' COMLEX-USA examination and payment of a license 
fee of up to $600; and
4. Eliminate the word "fellow" from the laws governing temporary licensure.