If you run a hormone clinic in Indiana and you skimmed past the headline about the new “med spa” law, this one is for you. Especially because you’re probably telling yourself it doesn’t apply to you.

It does. Let me show you why.

What happened

On March 5, 2026, Governor Braun signed SB282 into law. Most of it takes effect July 1, 2026, and every Indiana “medical spa” has to register with the Indiana Medical Licensing Board by January 1, 2027, name a responsible practitioner, and follow new oversight rules.

“But I’m not a med spa”

Here’s the trap, and it’s a good one. The law says “medical spa” right in the title. So if you run a hormone clinic, a weight-loss practice, or an IV lounge, your brain files it under “not me” and moves on.

Looks like a hormone clinic. Acts like a hormone clinic. Surely it isn’t a med spa?

According to Indiana, yes it is.

The legal read

SB282 doesn’t define a med spa by what you call yourself. It defines it by what you do. Under the law, you’re a medical spa if you check three boxes:

1. You provide medical healthcare services or treatments;
2. You use prescription drugs, including anything given by IV, IM, or subcutaneous injection; and
3. You hold yourself out to consumers as focused on cosmetic, aesthetic, wellness, longevity, or lifestyle services.

Now read those again as a hormone clinic. You prescribe and inject testosterone (boxes 1 and 2). You market yourself around wellness, longevity, and optimization (box 3). That is the entire definition.

And in case there was any doubt, the law names the services it is reaching: Botox and fillers, weight-loss therapies, hormone treatments, hair-loss services, and nutrient infusions. Hormone treatments. In writing.

So the label on your door doesn’t decide this. The statute does.

What this means for you

If you offer hormones, GLP-1 weight loss, or IV therapy in Indiana, plan on being treated as a medical spa:

• You’ll need to register with the Medical Licensing Board by January 1, 2027.
• You’ll need to designate a responsible practitioner: a physician, PA, or APRN who meets the law’s qualifications and oversight duties.
• Watch the location rule. SB282 restricts providing these services outside the registered med spa, a physician office, or a health care facility, so pop-up, mobile, and house-call models need a hard look.

What to do now

• Run yourself through the three-part test honestly. If you prescribe, you inject, and you market wellness, assume you qualify.
• Identify your responsible practitioner now, not in December.
• Map your service locations against the location restriction.
• Put January 1, 2027 on the calendar as a hard registration deadline and back-plan from it.

What to watch

Indiana isn’t alone. Iowa has a similar facility-licensure proposal, and more states are moving to define and register this exact category of practice. The “I’m a hormone clinic, not a med spa” defense is going to get weaker everywhere.

The label was never the point. What you do is.

Real compliance strategy from a real attorney.

Y’all stay protected out there.

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Not sure whether SB282 captures your practice, or what registration actually requires? That’s exactly the kind of thing we work through inside The Protected Practice.

Court Approved Council is owned by Court Approved, PLLC and is not a law firm. Nothing here is legal advice and no attorney-client relationship is formed.