How to Become a Medical Assistant in Indiana

Who can apply

• Indiana has no state license or registration for medical assistants. IC 25-22.5-1-2(a)(20) lets an employee of a physician or physician group do tasks customarily within the employing physician's area of practice, under that physician's direction and supervision.
• To operate an x-ray machine you need a Department of Health license or permit (410 IAC 5.2-3-1). For medical assistants the usual route is a limited chest radiography license; new limited general radiography licenses are no longer issued.
• Indiana does not accept x-ray permits, licenses or certificates from other states.

Step by step

1. Finish a medical assistant program or get on-the-job training from your employer. Indiana does not require a set program.
2. (Optional) Pass a national certification exam (CMA-AAMA, RMA-AMT, CCMA-NHA or NCMA-NCCT). Indiana does not require one.
3. If you will take chest x-rays, enroll in a Department of Health-approved chest radiography program, get a provisional permit, complete clinical proficiency training, pass the ARRT limited scope exam (core and chest) or the Continuing Education Providers chest exam, and apply for the $60 license.
4. Work as an employee under the direction and supervision of the physician whose area of practice covers the task.

Training and exam

Training: No state-mandated medical assistant program. For a limited chest radiography license you must complete a department-approved program and be certified as proficient by a licensed practitioner or a licensed radiologic technologist educator (410 IAC 5.2-12-1).

Exam: No state medical assistant exam, and Indiana does not require national certification. For a limited chest radiography license, the Department of Health accepts the ARRT limited scope exam (core plus chest) or the Continuing Education Providers chest exam.

What it costs in Indiana

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 Indiana

What a medical assistant can do in Indiana: As an employee of a physician or physician group, you may do acts, duties or functions customarily within the employing physician's area of practice, under the direction and supervision of that physician or another physician in the group whose practice covers the task (IC 25-22.5-1-2(a)(20)).

What a medical assistant cannot do: The same exclusion says an employee may not make a diagnosis or prescribe treatment, must report exam results to the supervising physician, and may not administer medication without the physician's specific order. It does not give you independent practice status.

X-ray: Under 410 IAC 5.2-3-1, no one without a Department of Health license, certificate or permit may operate a radiation machine; physicians and some other practitioners are exempt, and so is bone density testing by trained staff. A limited chest radiography license covers chest x-rays ordered by a practitioner. Indiana stopped issuing new limited general radiography licenses to first-time applicants; existing holders can still renew. A provisional permit for clinical training lasts six months and cannot be renewed.

Provisional permit and applications: If your six-month provisional permit expires before you finish the license requirements, you must stop taking x-rays until the license is issued (410 IAC 5.2-3-3(f)). A license application is treated as abandoned if it is not completed within six months of filing (410 IAC 5.2-4-2(e)).

Sources

• IC 25-22.5-1-2 - Exclusions (Indiana Code, Justia mirror)
• Indiana Department of Health - Radiology, Weights and Measures
• IDOH - Requirements to obtain a first-time Indiana Chest Radiographer License
• 410 IAC 5.2-3-1 - Licensing and permit requirements (Cornell LII)
• 410 IAC 5.2-11-1 - Limited general radiography license (Cornell LII)
• 410 IAC 5.2-12-1 and 12-2 - Limited chest radiography license (Cornell LII)
• 410 IAC 5.2-4-8 - Fees (Cornell LII)
• 410 IAC 5.2-2-1 - Exemptions (Cornell LII)
• 410 IAC 5.2-4-2 Expiration and renewal of license