How to Become a Medical Assistant in Illinois

Who can apply

• Illinois has no state license or registration for medical assistants. Under 225 ILCS 60/54.2(b), a physician may delegate patient care tasks to an unlicensed person who has appropriate training and experience.
• That delegation must happen in an office or practice setting, within a physician-patient relationship, with a licensed health care professional on site to provide assistance.
• To take x-rays you need IEMA-OHS Limited Diagnostic Radiography accreditation (chest, extremities, skull/sinus and/or spine), earned by passing the ARRT limited scope exam.

Step by step

1. Finish a medical assistant program or get on-the-job training from your employer. Illinois does not require a set program, but you need appropriate training and experience for each task you are delegated.
2. (Optional) Pass a national certification exam (CMA-AAMA, RMA-AMT, CCMA-NHA or NCMA-NCCT). Illinois does not require one.
3. If you will take x-rays, register for the ARRT Examination for the Limited Scope of Practice in Radiography through IEMA-OHS, pass it (65 percent), and apply for Limited Diagnostic Radiography accreditation.
4. Work on delegated tasks only in an office or practice setting with a licensed health care professional on site.

Training and exam

Training: No state-mandated medical assistant program. 225 ILCS 60/54.2(b) requires that an unlicensed person have appropriate training and experience for the tasks delegated, and (c) requires the task to be within the delegating physician's own scope, education, training or experience.

Exam: No state medical assistant exam, and Illinois does not require national certification. To take x-rays, you must pass the ARRT Examination for the Limited Scope of Practice in Radiography, scheduled through IEMA-OHS, with a score of at least 65 percent (32 Ill. Adm. Code 401.70).

What it costs in Illinois

Fixed amounts are set by the state. Items marked “your quote” are priced by private sellers, so enter what you’re quoted.

Good to know in Illinois

What a medical assistant can do in Illinois: A physician may delegate patient care tasks to a trained, experienced unlicensed person in an office or practice setting, within a physician-patient relationship, when a licensed health care professional is on site to help (225 ILCS 60/54.2(b)). Delegation may be oral, written, electronic, or by standing orders or protocols (54.2(f)).

What a medical assistant cannot do: A physician may not delegate any task that a statute or rule says must be done by a physician, and may not delegate tasks outside the physician's own scope, training or experience (54.2(a) and (c)). Without a licensed professional on site, the office-setting delegation in 54.2(b) does not apply.

X-ray: A Limited Diagnostic Radiographer works under the general supervision of a licensed practitioner and may x-ray only the chest, extremities, skull/sinus or spine, as accredited; they may not work for a portable x-ray service. You may not x-ray patients until you pass the exam and are accredited, unless you are registered with IEMA-OHS as a student-in-training (up to 16 months, under personal supervision). Renewal requires 12 continuing education credits and a $120 application.

Exceptions in x-ray rules: IEMA-OHS rules exempt assistants who only perform bone densitometry under a physician's general supervision, and assistants who do x-rays under the general supervision of a podiatrist (32 Ill. Adm. Code 401.30).

Sources

• 225 ILCS 60/54.2 - Physician delegation of authority
• 32 Ill. Adm. Code 401 - Accrediting Persons in the Practice of Medical Radiation Technology (entire Part)
• 32 Ill. Adm. Code 401.70 - Examination Requirements
• 32 Ill. Adm. Code 401.30 - Exemptions
• 32 Ill. Adm. Code 401.100
• 32 Ill. Adm. Code 401.100 - Accreditation term and renewal (Cornell LII)