How to Become a Medical Assistant in Louisiana

Who can apply

• Louisiana has no state license or registration for medical assistants. They work as unlicensed staff under the physician who delegates to them.
• To take x-rays in a physician's private office or clinic, you need an LSBME private radiologic technologist certificate (or a license from the Louisiana State Radiologic Technology Board of Examiners).
• For the private radiologic technologist certificate you must be at least 18, be of good moral character, have a high school diploma or approved equivalency, and complete a qualifying radiology course (LAC 46:XLV.2907).

Step by step

1. Finish a medical assistant program or get on-the-job training from your employer. Louisiana does not require a specific program.
2. Optional: earn a national certification (CMA, RMA, CCMA or NCMA). Louisiana does not require one.
3. If your job includes x-rays, complete an accredited radiography program or a board-approved course of radiological study and safety (finished within six months before you apply).
4. Apply through the LSBME LaMED Dashboard, mail the required forms (oath or affirmation, third-party authorization, statement of legal name), have your high school send an official transcript, and pay the $35 nonrefundable fee by card. LSBME then sends background check instructions. Board rules also say the application is submitted by your proposed supervising physician, with notarized affidavits from both of you (LAC 46:XLV.2913).
5. Work only on tasks your supervising physician delegates. Your x-ray certificate covers only the category and work location listed in the approved application.

Official application →

Training and exam

Training: Louisiana has no state-mandated medical assistant program. For x-ray work, you need either an accredited radiologic technology program or a course approved by the board for your employing physician. A board-approved course must include at least 12 semester credit hours at an accredited college (introduction to radiologic technology, medical ethics, radiation safety and protection, patient care and positioning). It also needs a clinical practicum of at least 5 hours a week for at least 8 weeks, taught by a physician or licensed radiologic technologist (LAC 46:XLV.2911).

Exam: Louisiana has no state exam for medical assistants, and national certification exams are voluntary. The LSBME private radiologic technologist rules (LAC 46:XLV Chapter 29) require an approved course, not an exam. The board may interview the applicant and supervising physician. If you are ARRT-certified, LSBME directs you to the Louisiana State Radiologic Technology Board of Examiners for licensure instead.

What it costs in Louisiana

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 Louisiana

What a medical assistant can do in Louisiana: Louisiana has no medical assistant statute or rule listing tasks. The LSBME says an unlicensed MA or CMA may perform services they have been adequately trained for, as long as they work under physician supervision, for example with the physician physically present on the premises and immediately available whenever they perform delegated duties. In March 2021 the LSBME approved a response to a question about delegating IV catheter starts or IV monitoring to a trained medical assistant with the physician present and supervising; the response itself is not published in the minutes.

What a medical assistant cannot do: You may not take x-rays in a physician's office or clinic without a private radiologic technologist certificate, unless you hold a Radiologic Technology Board license. A new employee gets a one-time exemption for the first six months with that supervising physician. The exemption does not apply if you have taken x-rays as a private radiologic technologist or in any earlier job (LAC 46:XLV.2905).

X-ray: LSBME issues private radiologic technologist certificates endorsed as radiographer, radiation therapy or nuclear medicine. You must carry a copy of your certificate. You may use radiation only in the category on your certificate, at the address in the approved job description. Each physician who employs x-ray staff must report them to the LSBME every year as a condition of the physician's own license renewal (LAC 46:XLV.2915 and 2917).

Sources

• LSBME - Private Radiological Technologists
• LSBME - Application & Instructions for Initial Licensure, Private Radiological Technology
• La. Admin. Code tit. 46, XLV-2905 - Necessity of Certificate; Exemptions (Cornell LII)
• La. Admin. Code tit. 46, XLV-2907 - Qualifications for Certification (Cornell LII)
• La. Admin. Code tit. 46, XLV-2911 - Application for Approval of Course of Study (Cornell LII)
• La. Admin. Code tit. 46, XLV-2913 - Application for Certification; Procedure (Cornell LII)
• La. Admin. Code tit. 46, XLV-2915 - Issuance of Certificate; Rating (Cornell LII)
• La. Admin. Code tit. 46, XLV-2917 - Obligations and Responsibilities (Cornell LII)
• LSBME Board Meeting Minutes, March 29, 2021 (item 5)
• LSBME Frequently Asked Questions